Desperado
by kamers
Summary: After too many failed relationships, Marly McKinnon resigns to the fact that she will be a crazy cat lady. However, everyone knows Sirius can have a certain effect on any woman. But will Marly's best friend get in the way of a potentially happy ending?
1. Introduction

_**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Desperado" is by The Eagles and I do not own it in any way._

**Desperado  
Introduction**

_January 1980_**  
**

With a happy sigh, Sirius fell back into the old leather chair that, after years of use, seemed to have finally reached the perfect level of comfort. Being the only one home, the house was eerily still, which made him a bit uncomfortable. Shaking off the feeling, he leaned back, his feet resting on the matching ottoman, and opened his book, _Utopia_.

Try as he might, Sirius was unable to concentrate on the words in front of him. He breathed deeply, smelling the still tacky paint that was drifting down the hall from the guest room turned nursery. His gaze drifted out the window and he could see the snow lazily falling to the ground, illuminated by the neighbours Christmas lights. _'Muggles,'_ Sirius thought with an amused look on his face.

Suddenly, a crack filled the room, causing Sirius to jump and his young beagle puppy to begin barking. Before he could reach his wand, Sirius realized that it was only James and his heart rate returned to normal.

"Prongs, you - what happened?"

"Listen, Sirius, we need to talk," James interrupted, his normally joking eyes deadly serious.

"What is going on?" Sirius asked, his heart rate accelerating again as he began to assume the worst.

James gave Sirius a pained look, running his hand through his hair, allowing Sirius to glimpse a deep gash that ran down his forearm. Sirius took a moment to take in James's appearance - from the crack through one of the lenses in his glasses to his ripped robes that revealed a deep purple bruise forming underneath on his chest.

"What - " Sirius began again, but James put up a hand to silence him.

"Sirius, it's…," he glanced around the room, for once not being able to find the words to say to his best mate. "It's about Marly."


	2. Finding A Good Man

_**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Finding A Good Man" is by Danielle Peck and I do not own it in any way._

**Desperado  
Chapter One: Finding A Good Man**

_Blind dates and horror stories  
Pushy gals and fast movers  
Let's dedicate this girls' night out  
To big-talkers, bad losers_

"Marly?" Remus Lupin whispered, his voice barely audible as he eased his flatmate's door open. "Are you awake?"

When she didn't answer, Remus quickly and silently slipped into the room, which was dimly lit by a single flickering candle on a bedside table. Through the light, Remus could just make out the lime green robes draped over the window, acting as a curtain by blocking the afternoon sun, and the posters and pictures that were taped haphazardly on the walls.

"Marly?" Remus asked again, stumbling over a pile of dirty clothes and stubbing his toe on a box. "Damn it."

"Mmremush?" came a mumbled voice from underneath the pale green down comforter on the full size bed that Remus was struggling to make his way to.

"It's nearly two in the afternoon," Remus scolded gently, sitting down next to Marlene, Marly if you wanted to live to see another day, McKinnon, his lifelong best friend, and pulling the comforter down to reveal her face.

"So?" Marly asked, wiping her light blue eyes furiously as she began to wake up.

"So," Remus continued, a bit amused by the situation as a whole, "your work schedule on the refrigerator seems to say that you were supposed to be at work almost two hours ago."

"I'm sick," Marly explained in a pathetic voice. She brought Remus's hand to her forehead and said, "See? I have a fever."

"No, you don't. The only way you're sick is from the two pints of ice cream you ate last night," Remus smirked, but feeling her cheeks for good measure.

"That's why I'm sick, then," Marly pouted, trying to pull her comforter up again, but Remus held tight. "Come on, Remus, I want to mope."

"You've been moping over more or less two weeks now," Remus countered. "When are you going to resign to the fact that you do have to rejoin the living world?"

"Two to three more hours," Marly sighed, taking Remus's hand once more time and pulling him next to her, so her back was to his chest and his arm was wrapped around her tightly.

They sat silently like that for a few moments, and then Remus cleared his throat and asked in a soft, comforting tone, "Are you going to be okay?"

"Eventually," Marly admitted, letting Remus pull his fingers through her hair. "I don't know why I'm so upset about it all. Gerald was quite the git and, after all, _I_ broke up with _him_."

"Why did you ditch him?" Remus asked gently, not having actually talked to her about it since it happened.

"Turns out he's married," Marly snorted, "with two kids."

"Oh, ouch."

"Yeah, apparently the blighter's wife found out, too," Marly added. "She blames me, naturally, and he didn't want me to get hurt. Maybe he should've thought about it before he got involved with someone that wasn't his wife."

"Maybe," Remus couldn't help but chuckle. This wasn't the first time Marly had caught herself up in some sort of scandal and been completely oblivious as to what was going on. "Does his wife know who you are?"

"No, thankfully," Marly replied. "Which is definitely good because I don't want to deal with the dungbombs and all that other childish stuff like from Timothy's girlfriend."

"Neither do I," Remus agreed, remembering how embarrassing it was to wake up to a dung covered front door.

"Oh, Rem, why is it we had to meet in the sandbox all those years ago?" Marly mused as Remus comfortingly ran his fingers through her brown curls that almost matched his perfectly.

"Well, I'm sorry," Remus replied, pretending to be hurt. "Would you like to move out and start over?"

"Shush," Marly retorted, swatting him over her shoulder. "You know what I mean."

"I'd have to say that the fact you made us sign a contract when were fourth years so stating that we would never be together that way makes it all your fault," Remus rolled his eyes, practically reciting from a script after having this conversation whenever Marly had a hard heartbreak, which seemed to be every other week.

"Oh, yeah," Marly sighed. "Besides, you're too tall for me."

Remus rolled his eyes once more and made a face behind Marly's head that included full sticking out his tongue and crossing his eyes.

"Stop making that face," Marly scolded without turning to look at him.

"What face?" Remus asked innocently, untangling himself from around Marly and sitting up.

"Don't play coy with me, Remus John," Marly replied, sitting up as well but bringing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them protectively.

"Whatever you say, Marlene Cecilia."

Remus glanced around the room again and made a disapproving noise from the back of his throat. "How can you live with it being so dark in here?" He reached up above the bed and tugged at her work uniform, allowing the sunlight to stream through the window and into the rest of the room, illuminating the rest of the chaos. "And how can you live with it being so damn messy in here?"

"I'm hardly ever in here, _Mum_," Marly scoffed, disdainfully feeling the messy mop of curls on her head that she called hair.

"You've been in here for nearly two weeks straight," Remus retorted, collecting her dirty laundry and placing it in her empty hamper. "Why do you have this if you don't use it?"

"Remus, you honestly sound just like my mum," Marly staggered out of the bed and to her feet, revealing the pyjama pants she'd stolen from Remus and her own tank top.

"You know, my grandmum gave me those for Christmas a few years back," Remus said offhandedly, glancing over his shoulder. "Those are my favourite pyjamas."

"They're a bit big in the waist," Marly jabbed at Remus, pulling open her closet door and fishing for some clothes to wear. "I don't know why you're making me get out of bed if I'm just going to move onto the sofa."

"That reminds me," Remus turned to face her, folding what he assumed to be a clean sweater. "Lily stopped by Flourish and Blotts today on her lunch. Apparently the two of you were supposed to meet for lunch today - "

"Oh, bloody hell," Marly swore, choosing a brown sweater. "That's the second time this week I've forgotten. That gets hung."

"Anyway, she said that since you stood her up you have to go out with a bunch of people tonight," Remus finished, sidestepping Marly to go to her closet.

"Great," Marly groaned, ripping her dresser open to extract some jeans and undergarments. "Girls' night out."

"You know, getting out of the house might be good for you," Remus replied, turning to make her bed. "You're supposed to meet her at some Muggle pub in London. It's on the same block as Diagon Alley and all that."

"Muggle?" Marly scrunched up her nose.

"I guess," Remus shrugged, smoothing out the comforter. "She said she had big news."

"She didn't tell you what it was?" Marly asked, holding her clothes to her chest with her hip jutted out.

"She probably wanted it to be a surprise and she knows that you know how to manipulate me," Remus shrugged.

"Well, whatever, I'm going to go take a shower," Marly sighed, backing out of the room. "And, Rem, stop cleaning my room."

"We both know that if I don't do it, you certainly never will," Remus cocked an eyebrow. "That's why I do your laundry, too."

"You're so strange," Marly pointed out.

"Yet you keep me around."

"You pay half the rent, clean my room, and do my laundry," Marly smirked. "And no romantic attachment whatsoever. What more could I ask for?"

"I'm glad that's all I am to you," Remus replied, fluffing her pillows.

"Basically, yes," Marly grinned, turning down the hallway to the bathroom. "Showering!"

"About bloody time," Remus shouted back, an amused expression on his face.

* * *

"Marly!" Lily Evans exclaimed over exuberantly, nearly knocking her drink over as she very furiously waved to her friend as she walked through the front door. "Marlene McKinnon, over here!" 

"I can see you, Lily," Marly smirked, clutching her purse close to her as she made her way over to the table that her group of friends were sitting at.

"I'd started to think you were dead," Adrianna McKinnon, Marly's younger sister, joked as she pushed Lily's drink out of her elbow space.

"Well, Anna, if you'd come and visit me ever so often, perhaps your mind would've been put at ease," Marly shot back, taking a seat between her two other friends, Sheila Applegate and Katherine Reynolds.

"Look, Marly, I knew you'd want a brandy so I ordered it for you already," Lily grinned, her eyes wide as she pushed the drink toward Marly.

"How long have you guys been here?" Marly addressed her other friends, not being able to suppress a grin at how Lily was acting.

"Hardly an hour," Katherine shook her head, looking as amused as Marly felt, as she took a drink of her seltzer water.

"You know how Lily is," Sheila put a hand over her mouth and lowering her voice so only Marly could hear her. "She just needs to smell a drink to get inebriated."

"Hey!" Lily's eyes managed to get wider, threatening to fall out. "No secrets at this table!"

"Of course, Lily," Sheila smiled. "I was only telling Marly how amazing you look tonight."

"Oh!" Lily exclaimed, grinning widely. "Thanks!"

"So," Marly took a sip of her drink, scrunching up her nose after tasting it. "Other than the disgusting drinks, what brings us to this fine Muggle pub establishment?"

"There's someone I want you to meet," Lily continued grinning. "He had to step out, but he'll be back and then you're going to meet him and fall deeply in love and shag." She began to giggle.

"Lord, Lily," Anna rolled her eyes. "I'm glad to see that after nearly twenty years of life you're still as mature as when I met you our first year."

"She was still immature when I got to know her my sixth year," Marly added, mixing her drink with the short, yellow straw. "But, I'm sorry, Lily, your plan has been thwarted."

"Why might that be?" Sheila asked. "Find a new guy already?"

"Just the opposite," Marly held her head up with dignity. "I'm swearing off men."

"Oh, yeah, all right," Anna rolled her eyes. "Come on, Marly, you were sneaking boys into our house when you were only a third year through Floo Powder."

"I'm serious!" Marly crossed her arms. "I am through with men. I'm sick of finding this seemingly perfect guy and then finding out there's some fatal flaw - like they're married."

"You know what really gets me," Sheila spoke up, "is when they're such bad mama's boys that they can't even stick up for themselves."

"At least you've never had one cheat on you," Anna grimaced, then put on a sly grin. "Then again, I'm sure he won't be cheating any time soon after what I did to him."

"However, that doesn't change what Anna said, Marly," Lily grinned. "You wish you could get by without a man."

"Excuse me, Miss Evans, I am a strong, independent woman of the 70s - in fact," Marly protested, holding up her drink. "I so swear on the holiness of the traditional girls' night out that I will be man free for, oh, I don't know - "

"A year!" Sheila suggested.

"No, it has to be an actual realistic amount of time," Anna shook her head. "I give her, ah, six months."

"I can do that," Marly replied confidently as the other women clinked their glasses together. Marly made another face after drinking the brandy and turned to see that the bartender was still vacant from the bar.

"Ah, the joys of being happily married," Katherine grinned, flashing her left ring finger happily.

"Oh, sod off, Kath," Anna playfully elbowed her friend in the side.

"Anyways, Lily, onto the topic of the hour," Katherine interrupted the man bash, putting a hand on her swollen belly. "What is this big news you promised to tell us once Marly got here?"

"Hey, don't blame me for my tardiness!" Marly put up her hands in protest. "It was Remus's fault - he managed to lose the sweater I wanted to wear while doing my laundry."

"Remus does your laundry?" Sheila asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Yeah, he's anal like that," Marly waved her hand in dismissal. "I'm definitely not complaining, though."

"So much for strong and independent," Anna mumbled under her breath, causing Marly to through her straw across the table at her.

"Excuse me," Lily interrupted, allowing Marly to marvel in how well her other best friend could speak, given her current state. "I do, in fact, have some big news that, well, definitely clashes with Marly's oath. Last night," her face suddenly split into a huge grin and she thrust her left hand out, which she had been carefully hiding for the right moment, "James asked me to marry him!"

"About damn time," Sheila scoffed, then gave a congratulatory smile to the bride-to-be.

"It was so sweet," Lily sighed, a dreamy look on her face. "I came home from work and he had the entire flat filled with lilies and there was a huge box on the kitchen table - "

"Oh, I totally gave him that idea," Marly interrupted.

"And I had to keep opening smaller boxes until I got to the one with the ring and, oh, it was so sweet," Lily finished, sighing deeply.

"Did you guys talk about a date yet?" Anna asked.

"Yeah, December 17, 1978," Lily smiled.

"That's in just over six months, Lily," Katherine reminded her. "Quite the short engagement."

"Oh, please, they might as well have been together since they were first years," Sheila interrupted. "The sexual tension was there at least."

"I thought Gryffindor Tower was going to collapse after they finally shagged without it lingering in the air," Anna added with a smirk.

"Against my better judgement," Lily interrupted again, her cheeks slightly flushed, although Marly didn't know if that was from the conversation or the alcohol. "I want you all to be my bridesmaids. I won't take no for an answer. There will be dire consequences if you even think about it."

"I'll have popped by then, thankfully," Katherine nodded. "It was horrific when my sister-in-law stood up in my wedding, remember? She wouldn't stop complaining."

"Oh, Marly!" Lily said excitedly. "There he is, come on!"

"Fine," Marly sighed, taking her drink and getting to her feet. "Although, I'm sure you remember that oath I made just moments ago?"

"We all know you're going to break it," Lily rolled her eyes, taking Marly's arm and dragging her to the bar, where a tall, good-looking man with black hair was bartending. When she stopped, she leaned on the bar for support, as she had already passed her limit. "Okay, here we are - Marly, this is Sirius Black. Sirius, this is Marly McKinnon."

"Uh, Lily, Sirius and I have met," Marly raised an eyebrow, then lowered her voice. "We're all in the Order together, unless you somehow forgot."

"Just how much did you drink?" Sirius asked Lily, not bothering to hide his amused expression as he wiped the bar down.

"James told me that you were complaining that the two of you have never been properly introduced," Lily addressed Sirius. "He also said something about how Marly was quite the fox and you wouldn't mind getting into - "

"And this is where you'll stop talking, Lily," Sirius gave an apologetic look to Marly as he put his hand over Lily's mouth.

"Did you make this drink?" Marly asked accusingly, putting the glass on the bar.

"Brandy?" Sirius asked, not taking his hand off Lily's mouth, who was fighting with all her might. "Yeah, I think so."

"It's horrid," Marly said plainly.

"Well, I'm sorry, miss, this is my second night and I'm used to Butterbeer and firewhiskey," Sirius retorted, finally removing his hand and allowing Lily to breathe. "That's what your nose is for, Lily."

"Before you two start hating each other and then have a make up shag - "

"Lily, must you always be so crude when you're drunk?" Marly asked as Sirius turned to make her a new drink.

" - I want to inform you both that you're the best man and maid-of-honour for James and my wedding," Lily continued as though Marly hadn't said anything.

"James already told me," Sirius said over his shoulder. "I helped him set everything up."

"Me, Lily?" Marly asked. "Are you sure? I mean, you've known Anna, Katherine, and Sheila ages longer than me - "

"Yet, _you_ are my best friend," Lily interrupted. "Yes, I'm sure."

"Here is your drink, her majesty," Sirius put down the glass in front of Marly.

"Thank you," Marly sniffed, then took a sip from the drink. "That's better."

"I'm glad I could aid in making you happy," Sirius smirked. "Now, if you ladies don't mind, I have other customers to tend to."

Once he was out of earshot, Lily turned to Marly. "Well?"

"Well what?" Marly asked. "Lily, do you honestly think Sirius Black is the kind of guy I'd go for?"

"What's wrong with him?" Lily asked, crossing her arms defiantly. "He's got a great sense of humour, he has a huge heart, he's fun to hang out with, brave, smart, incredibly handsome - "

"Then why don't you date him?" Marly suggested.

"Somehow I don't think James would appreciate me dating his best mate," Lily pondered for a moment. "Anyway - what's wrong with him?"

"He isn't my type," Marly replied, taking a drink from her brandy. Noticing the look Lily was giving her, she exclaimed, "What?"

"Oh, you're right, Marly," Lily sighed. "He definitely isn't your type. Besides, he isn't married, doesn't have any children, and has no criminal record. Where's the fun in that?"

"Lily, I gave that man more detentions when I was Head Girl than any other person at Hogwarts," Marly stuck her thumb in Sirius's direction. "Just lay off, all right?"

"Yeah, yeah," Lily rolled her eyes. "But, you're really missing out on what could be something great."

"Lily, if we're meant to be, it'll happen," Marly replied. "However, I can guarantee you that there is no chance that it would work out between Sirius Black and me."

"Whatever," Lily shrugged, leading Marly back to the table. "That's what you say."

"Stop saying stuff like that," Marly grumbled. "You know that when you pretend to be a Seer you're never right, right?"

"I am this time," Lily allowed a smile to play on her lips and then sat back down. "Now, girls, what do you think about colours for dresses?"

* * *

_**Author's Note:** See? Much longer than the intro. :-) Not much to say other than thanks so much for reading and please let me know what you think!_


	3. Save The Last Dance For Me

_**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Save The Last Dance For Me" is by Michael Bublé and I do not own it in any way._

**Desperado  
Chapter Two: Save The Last Dance For Me**

_Baby, don't you know I love you so  
Can't you feel it when we touch?  
I will never ever let you go  
I love you oh so much_

"There you are," Lily sighed, adjusting her lime green robes that clashed horribly with her red hair as she strode up to Marly. "I was starting to think you weren't going to come in to work today."

"Remus woke me up bright and early," Marly sighed in an annoyed fashion, meeting Lily halfway and starting to the staircase. "I had half a mind to owl in after he left for work, but I didn't have anything else to do."

"I'm sure it had nothing to do with the fact Meredith is about ready to sack you," Lily pointed out, leading the way through the staircase and up to the fourth floor, where we were both stationed.

"Nothing," Marly replied, smirking as Lily hurried past the portrait of an old wizard, who called after her about spattergoit. "Really, you should get that checked out, Lily."

"You can go ahead and sod off," Lily called over her shoulder at Marly, who was taking the stairs at her own leisure.

Once they entered the floor dedicated to spell damage, Lily fetched both hers and Marly's clipboards, which had their duties for their shift on them.

"Oh, bloody hell, I'm stuck with the nutters in permanent," Marly complained quietly, careful that Lily was the only one that heard.

"Marly!" Lily scolded, looking up from her clipboard incredulously. "Remind me again why you wanted to be a Healer?"

"I'm sorry, I'm incredibly pessimistic today," Marly admitted, but didn't look nearly as morose as she claimed.

"Yeah, all right," Lily rolled her eyes. "Want to get some dinner or something after work and then head to the Order meeting?" She lowered her voice when she reached the end of the sentence, then looked around warily as though people were trying to overhear their conversation

"I can't," Marly apologized, sending Lily a look. "I have a date."

"It's only been three months!" Lily exclaimed, an 'I-told-you-so' smile on her lips.

"Allow me to rephrase," Marly put up one finger, glad she could squash her best friend so easily. "I have plans with Remus."

"Oh," Lily's face fell. "That doesn't count."

"Exactly," Marly smirked. "I have to run home right after work, go to the meeting, and then my night is devoted to Remus."

"Isn't it always?" Lily asked, her emerald eyes twinkling. "What are you two doing?"

"That's none of your business," Marly replied briskly.

"Why are you two so secretive when it comes to your weekly dates?"

"Because we're actually engaging in promiscuous activities relating to strippers and addictive drug use," Marly shrugged, looking back down at her clipboard.

"I'm starting to think that might actually be the truth," Lily half-joked, beginning to turn away to attend to her duties.

Before the two of them could go their separate ways, Meredith Fredrickson, the head Healer on the spell damage floor, stopped in front of the two of them.

"Good morning, Healers," she said in a would-be pleasant voice, if she wasn't staring down Marly, resembling a hawk.

"Good morning, Healer Fredrickson," Lily chirped happily while Marly mumbled a greeting under her breath, still reading over her duties for the day.

"McKinnon, I'll remind you that your scarf is not part of the work uniform," Meredith sniffed, and then walked past the two of them to tend to her office.

"Of course," Marly called after her, obviously having heard this quite a few times.

After a silent moment, Lily cleared her throat loudly, forcing Marly to look up at her.

"What?"

"Are you going to take the scarf off?" Lily asked pointedly, giving Marly a disapproving look.

"Do I ever?" Marly asked, raising a hand to the light blue scarf that was taming her curls and matched her eyes impeccably. "I have to go work now."

"Yeah, whatever," Lily sighed, taking off in the opposite direction of Marly.

"Pull that stick out, Lils!" Marly called after Lily, warranting a rude hand gesture in return from the redhead.

* * *

"I don't know why I let you talk me into this," Remus complained loudly, glancing through his bedroom's doorway through Marly's, who was standing in front of her closet scantily clad in a white slip, nylons, and her bra.

"Don't pretend you don't love it or you would've quit ages ago," Marly replied, plunging into her closet and pulling out two dresses, one a brilliant orange in colour and the other a deep purple. "Which do you think?"

"I don't know," Remus sighed, looking at himself in his mirror and smoothing his white Muggle dress shirt down over his chest. "How do I look?"

"Smashing," Marly replied. "Come on, Rem, you have to have an opinion."

Remus made an annoyed noise and begrudgingly turned to face Marly. "The orange one - I don't like how that purple one sits on you."

"It is a little on the large size," Marly admitted, throwing the purple one onto the floor and yanking the orange one off its hanger.

Remus pulled a matching tie out of his dresser and, as he began to tie it, walked into Marly's room and leaned against the doorframe. The orange dress accented her skin tone well. It was a halter dress, plunging low enough for her silver necklace to sit comfortably above the neckline. The dress ended just below her knee with a small A-line to it. The material was almost floaty, making it look as though Marly's movements were much more fluid than they really were.

"What do you think?" Marly asked Remus, pulling her hair back in a different scarf, this one black.

"Twirl for me," Remus smiled.

She did, allowing the dress to fly out with the slip, allowing him to glimpse a flash of her upper thigh.

"You look beautiful," Remus admitted as she stopped spinning.

"You're just saying that because you have to," Marly sighed, stepping into a pair of black heels and checking herself out in her mirror one more time. "I'm ready."

"As am I," Remus replied, shifting uncomfortably as Marly's eyes travelled along the full length of his body, checking for anything that might be out of place. She stood in front of him, straightened his tie, and ran her hands down the front of him, tugging the fabric tight. Remus tried to ignore the tremor that went through his body as she did so.

"Much better," Marly smiled. She took hold of her small black purse that she used for these outings and said, "To headquarters?"

"To headquarters," Remus agreed and the two of them Apparated at the same time.

They appeared in front of the Order of the Phoenix's headquarters, which was in a highly Muggle inhabited area of London, but that didn't mean the Muggles could actually see them. The two of them walked up to the unstable looking house that, in actuality, looked like little more than a shack. They silently walked up the path that led to the front door and stood on the stoop for a few moments without saying a word. Finally, the door swung open, revealing the inside of a house that could only fit into the small shack with the aid of magic.

"Moony, what are you wearing?" James Potter greeted them, his hazel eyes wide in amazement at the Muggle garb the two friends were donned in.

"Clothing," Remus replied, pushing past James as Marly did the same.

"B-but you look like a Muggle!"

"And what's wrong with Muggles, James?" Lily spoke up, but still looking shocked when she saw Marly and Remus's appearance. "You look nice."

"We're going to a show in London after the meeting," Remus lied flawlessly. After seven years of having to lie about his whereabouts every month, he became a very good liar, which sometimes made Marly uncomfortable because even she fell for his lines every now and again. "It's not like we wanted to show up in cloaks and robes."

"Yeah," Marly added lamely.

"Way to add to the conversation," James joked, granting Marly a wink.

"Are we going to have the meeting in the foyer?"

Marly looked up to see Sirius standing in the doorway of the sitting room, his arms crossed. He looked as though he wanted to comment on Remus and Marly's outfits, but thought better of it after listening to James.

"Come on, guys," Marly sighed, leading the other three into the sitting room.

Glancing around, she saw that most everyone was present and accounted for and anyone that wasn't probably was on some sort of mission. Marly and Remus were usually the last to arrive at meetings because Remus refused to leave without her and Marly tended to dawdle. Marly followed Sirius and took a place next to him on a dark green loveseat and Remus perched himself on the arm of it. The furniture in the room was quite mismatched, varying from lawn chairs to extravagant sofas that looked as though they had come from the common rooms of Hogwarts.

"Now that we are all here we can begin the meeting," Albus Dumbledore greeted, thogh there was no sense of annoyance in his voice - in fact, he gave the stragglers a good-natured wink. Marly was quite surprised to see that Dumbledore was there; he was usually absent from meetings, but always sent an owl ahead with his instructions.

Marly couldn't help but begin to drift away from the circular room filled with people ranging in ages from eighteen to however old Dumbledore happened to be. She knew she should have been paying more attention because she hadn't gone on a mission in quite some time and was probably due, but she kept stealing glances at Sirius, who kept making derisive noises next to her, which probably meant that Dumbledore was discussing a recent attack.

"…there were approximately thirteen Muggles killed at the house and Benjy Fenwick was sent to St. Mungo's and is recuperating there. Is there any word on how he is doing?"

"He was on my duties," Lily spoke up from the other side of the room. "He'll be just fine. There was minimal nerve damage from the Cruciatus and I suspect that he'll be released by tomorrow."

"Good, good," Dumbledore nodded, looking over his spectacles at Lily. "Now, this has been a fairly short meeting, but I have some things to tend to. Therefore, I will be assigning missions quickly and then unfortunately must be leaving your presences. First of all, Remus," Marly saw his head shoot up from where he was staring at the carpeting throughout the majority of the meeting, "will you continue trying to infiltrate the werewolf camps?"

Marly saw something flash across Remus's amber eyes, but it was gone just as fast as it had appeared. He nodded sharply. "Of course."

"Second, Adrianna and Peter," Dumbledore moved on to Anna, who was lounging on the floor with her back to the front of the armchair that Peter Pettigrew was sitting in. "You are trailing Lucius Malfoy, am I correct?"

"Right you are, Professor," Anna nodded, giving Dumbledore an "okay" sign with her right hand.

"Now, Adrianna, how many times have I asked you to call me Albus?" There was a slight tittering across the group.

"Well, Professor, I believe just as many times as I've asked you to call me Anna," was the reply, the tittering growing to a good-natured laugh.

"Very well," Dumbledore warranted a smile. "How is it going?"

"Not as productive as we had first hoped," Anna admitted with a glance back at Peter. "However, we've been staking out Malfoy Manor for the past few weeks."

"We think that the Malfoys are hiding some sort of magical device in their house, but we've been unable to discover what it is so far," Peter spoke up, sounding as though he was reading from a script, which, Marly thought, could very well have been the case.

"But, don't you worry, Professor," Anna continued, giving Dumbledore a cocky smirk. "We'll figure it out."

"I put my full trust in you both," Dumbledore smiled. "Frank and Alice, might I congratulate you both and welcome you back from what I'm sure was a most pleasurable honeymoon."

"Emphasis on pleasurable," Sirius mumbled under his breath so only Marly could hear. Marly shot him a smile and jumped when she realized they were being addressed.

"Finally, Marlene and Sirius," Dumbledore began, looking thoughtful. "I do believe that the two of you have never worked together?"

"No, sir," Sirius shook his head.

"Well, I think that I will have a most special mission for the two of you," Dumbledore nodded, still looking as though he was trying to figure something out in his head. "Yes, I believe so. However, you will receive the details at a later date if that is all right."

"Not a problem," Marly nodded.

"Well, I believe that is that," Dumbledore got to his feet, dismissing the Order. "Alastor, could I have a word before I leave?"

"Secret mission," Sirius grinned, standing up as Marly and Remus did the same. "All right."

"I'm pretty sure that officially makes us the best," Marly shrugged, smirking slightly. "You know you're jealous, Rem."

"Anything is better than going underground," Remus sighed heavily, lowering his voice slightly. "I know that it's necessary and all but, damn. It's not as though I fit in any better with them than I do among wizards."

"Oh, Remus," Marly gave him a sympathetic look and putting a hand on his arm. "You're more of a wizard than Sirius will ever be."

Remus let out a laugh and, after a moment, Sirius protested, "Hey!"

"Now, come on," Marly smiled, taking his hand and giving it an encouraging squeeze. "We have a show to attend."

"This is quite true," Remus nodded.

The two quickly said their goodbyes before hurrying out of the sitting room, still hand in hand. Sirius came up to Lily, Anna, James, and Peter with a questioning look on his face, his eyes watching Remus and Marly disappear through the front door.

"Are they, er, together?"

Anna let out a loud laugh. "Yeah, right."

"What?" Sirius asked, giving her a questioning look and sounding a bit offended. "They sure act like it and I don't see Moony a terrible lot anymore."

"They've been friends since as long as I can remember and I don't think they've ever laid a hand on each other, despite how obvious it is that Remus is completely enamoured with her," Anna crossed her arms. "Actually, some of my first memories include Marly and Remus doing some sort of dastardly deed to me."

"Moony did dastardly deeds?" Sirius asked, his eyes wide. "I didn't think it was possible."

"Padfoot, remember when Remus would have lunches and dinners at the Ravenclaw table when we were still at Hogwarts?" James reminded Sirius, nonchalantly slipping his arm around Lily's waist.

"Yeah…," Sirius said slowly, and then widened his eyes. "She's that Marly McKinnon?"

"You know, we're really not a terribly popular wizarding name," Anna put in, trying to be informative. "My dad's a Muggle and we're pretty sure we're the only witches in his family."

Sirius, however, still looked completely shocked. "Why, she gave me at least a detention a week when she was Head Girl!"

"Don't even try to tell us you didn't deserve them," Lily snorted.

"Well, of course I did," Sirius gave Lily a condescending look. "I knew that Moony and Marly were friends and all, but I didn't know that she was the same one that went to Hogwarts with us."

"Think she just sprouted out of the ground, Padfoot?" Peter asked, smirking.

"In Sirius's defence," Anna put up a hand to stop the discussion, "my sister has kind of done a bit of a makeover the past few years."

"Thank you, Anna," Sirius looked at the others smugly, despite that they still looked amused.

"Yeah, she actually tries to tame that mane of hers," Anna continued. "And she ditched those ugly glasses once she finished school."

"Anyways," Sirius interrupted before Anna could degrade her sister further. "I have to work. Why don't you guys come with - drinks all around, my treat?"

* * *

"Ready? And, two-three-chachacha."

At a modest dance studio, not two blocks away from the Order of the Pheonix headquarters, six or seven couples were dancing across the floor. The only sound, other than their instructor's thick German accent giving off beats, was the click of the men and women's heels hitting the hardwood floor. All of the couples were silent - all of them, that is, except for a very orange couple in the corner.

"This is so damn easy," Marly mumbled under her breath, not even looking down to follow what Remus was leading her to do.

"Shush," Remus replied, barely audible. "Last time she caught us talking she nearly had our heads."

Marly gave Remus a smirk and surrendered to the beat that had suddenly changed from their instructor's voice to "Cha Cha Cha d'Amor" that was flooding through the speakers in the room. Marly barely had to glance into the mirrors that donned the entirety of the walls to see that they were obviously more advanced than the other couples were.

Marly felt as though she was floating on her heels as she turned away from Remus, feeling his hand glide down her spine and then back up as she spun toward him. Their hips moved together fluidly as though they knew what the other was going to do before they did it. As they followed the elaborate dance moves, Marly felt her skirt spin around her as Remus expertly guided her through the steps, their hands never leaving each other's. All thoughts about the Order, werewolves, Voldemort, and secret missions were far from their minds. They lost touch with the world - the only people that mattered were each other and the person singing the music and giving them the beats to move their feet to.

"Shoo, shoo, little bird," Dean Martin crooned, signaling the end of the song. "Tell her all my love."

As the final chords reverberated through the speakers, Marly and Remus slowly finished their final dance moves and froze in a close embrace. Their faces were barely an inch apart and it seemed as though they were staring each other down as they struggled to catch their breath.

Suddenly, applause filled the room, shocking the two of them out of their trance. The couple flushed as they noticed that the other students were clapping for them, obviously having stopped dancing quite a while before Remus and Marly had.

"Very good!" their instructor, Frau Brigitte, a short, portly woman, clapped along with the others, her eyes appraising Remus and Marly. "That vas very vell done. You 'ave obviously been practicing."

Remus and Marly exchanged a look - it had been nearly two weeks since the two had danced together, but they weren't about to admit it.

"Vell done, everyone!" Brigitte addressed the rest of the class. "That vill be all for tonight. I vill hope to see you all next veek!"

As Remus and Marly turned to fetch their things, Brigitte came up behind them, startling them both.

"If you don't mind me asking, vhere vere you last veek?" she asked in a non-judgemental tone. "You two are my star pupils and I missed having you."

"I was out of town," Remus apologized as Marly put the strap of her purse over one shoulder. In all actuality, the full moon had happened to land on the day of their dance class.

"I figured I wouldn't me a terrible lot of help without my partner," Marly finished, flashing Brigitte a smile.

"Vell, I missed you," Brigitte repeated, giving them both a warm smile. "I do vish the two of you vould reconsider competing."

"While it would be a lot of fun, Remus and I really have no time for that in our schedules," Marly gave a sad smile.

"Perhaps sometime you two could come to a club I know of," Brigitte gave them a questioning look. "Vhat good is it having such talent in my class if I can't show it off?"

Marly and Remus both laughed.

"I think that can be arranged," Remus gave a nod. "Just let us know ahead of time."

"Oh, I vill," Brigitte smiled slyly. "Have a good night."

With a sigh, Remus put a protective arm around Marly and steered her toward the door. As they waved goodbye to some of the other couples, Marly pushed Remus's arm off her and she shot Remus a look.

"Now, now, Remus, old boy," boomed Robert, an older man who always greeted Remus and Marly as though they had known each other for ages, which they had as they both began lessons together nearly two years earlier. "You can't let your wife treat you like that - show her who's boss!"

Remus cleared his throat uncomfortably and Marly spoke up.

"Even if we were married, I'd definitely be the boss," Marly grinned. "Goodnight, Robert."

"Goodnight, you two," he called after them.

Once they were on the London sidewalk, a light fall breeze sweeping by them, Marly turned to Remus.

"Now, was that so bad?"

"Yeah, yeah, you know you're right," Remus rolled his eyes.

"Damn, we were on fire tonight," Marly grinned, spinning around once. "Did you see the look on Caroline's face? She is _so_ smitten with you."

"Isn't she dating her partner?" Remus asked, raising an eyebrow. "I'm not like you, Marly."

"Oh, sod off, Rem," Marly elbowed him playfully. "So, are we going to continue pretending we aren't amazing dancers or are we going to come out to our friends?"

"I think you know the answer to that," Remus replied. "I wouldn't ever hear the end of it from Padfoot and Prongs."

Marly scoffed. "Anything they'd say would be sheer jealousy."

"Yet I still don't want to deal with it," Remus sighed as he came to a stop in front of a Muggle burger place they frequented after their lessons. "Now, let's eat."

"Fine," Marly rolled her eyes as she followed Remus into the restaurant. "I wish your friends would just grow up already."

"They're your friends, too, Miss Secret Mission," Remus countered. "Two, please."

"But I know that anything they say is bullocks," Marly shot back as they followed the hostess to a booth. "I just hate that I look so amazing once a week and you're the only one that gets to enjoy it."

"If it makes you feel any better, I enjoy it so," Remus replied, sitting down in the booth.

"It doesn't," Marly shot him a look. "Well, maybe next week."

"Maybe next week," Remus repeated, concluding the conversation they had every week after their ballroom dance lessons.

* * *

_**Author's Note:** Who would've thunk it - a werewolf dancing:-) Thank you for reading and please let me know what you think!_


	4. Good News

_**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Good News" is by Something Corporate and I do not own it in any way._

**Desperado  
Chapter Three: Good News**

_I wanna read good news  
I wanna be innocent again  
I wanna read good news  
But nothing good is happening_

At the early time of two in the morning, Marly awoke with a start, breathing heavily and covered in a cold sweat.

_'Just a nightmare,'_ she assured herself, sitting up and willing her heart to slow down.

Marly struggled to remember what the dream was about, but the details were slipping away from her like sand between her fingers. She vaguely remembered Remus and Sirius, but the rest of the details were too foggy to distinguish.

With a defeated sigh, Marly fell back into her bed, listening as the rain beat against the window above her bed. She watched as lightening broke across the sky, lighting it up momentarily, and then covered her face with her blanket. She loved thunderstorms, but she had an inclination that it was only in the very wee hours of the morning and she was quite exhausted.

As Marly began to drift back to sleep, she heard someone slowly push the door of her bedroom open, rustling against a pile of clothes she had thrown in front of it. Without moving, she strained harder to listen. Everything was silent for a moment, but then she heard a foot step on her Daily Prophet that she had left lying on the floor from the day before. Someone was definitely in her room.

Barely breathing, she slowly slid her hand under her pillow where she felt the hard wood of her wand. She gripped it tightly before jerking upright.

_"Expelliarmus!"_

"Ouch!" Remus shouted, jumping back as the red beam of light bounced harshly off his bare arm. "Bloody hell, Marly!"

"Oh, it's you," Marly rolled her eyes. _"Lumos."_

The light from her wand illuminated the disaster area that was her room and Remus, who was massaging his arm gingerly. He gave her a very annoyed look before he continued to his destination - her closet.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm looking for that sweatshirt you stole from me ages ago," Remus explained, fishing through her closet quickly.

"Rem, it's three in the morning," Marly said pointedly, jerking her head toward her clock.

"Dumbledore owled me," Remus sighed, pulling the sweatshirt out of her closet and looking grave as he turned to her. "He wants me to go underground."

"That was quite last minute," Marly replied, patting her bed softly to signal for him to sit by her.

"Well, I knew it was coming so I should have been prepared with a small bag," Remus shrugged, sitting on the edge of her bed. "I've known for nearly three weeks."

"Were you going to leave without waking me?" Marly asked, her tone a bit wounded.

"Of course not," Remus insisted, giving Marly a warm smile. "I wouldn't be able to live with myself."

"And you're going to be all right?" Marly asked earnestly.

"I kind of have to be, don't I?" Remus gave Marly a wry smile. "Although, it wouldn't be hard for me to think of quite a few other things I'd rather do than live with a whole lot of werewolves, as hypocritical as that might sound."

"I know what you mean," Marly said so seriously it was obvious she was joking. "I have to live with one. It's unbearable, I tell you."

"You can just go right on ahead and sod off," Remus replied in a snarky manner, elbowing Marly playfully in her side.

"How long are you going to be gone?" Marly asked, pulling her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them.

"Not entirely sure," Remus admitted, allowing his eyes to wash over her.

"How is work taking that?"

"Let's just say I'll be job hunting once I get back - again."

"Well, you better be back before my birthday," Marly said sternly. "The big two-one."

Remus only smiled, and then said, "I'll try."

"Good," Marly replied, and then let out a large yawn. "Oh, wow."

"You should go back to bed," Remus said, getting to his feet.

"Wait," Marly stopped him, following him in suit and placing her hand on his arm.

The light went out as Marly dropped her wand, spread her arms wide, and wrapped them around him tightly, her head resting on his shoulder. Their height difference was perfect when it came to their dancing and hugs like this. Remus allowed his sweatshirt to fall onto her bed and returned the hug, pressing their bodies together.

"Please be careful," Marly said quietly, sighing deeply into his bare neck, which caused a shiver to go up his spine.

Swallowing hard, he replied, "I always am."

"Okay," Marly nodded once, then loosened her grip, which he mimicked. Their hands fell to their sides and gripped each others' tightly. "Because, well, I wouldn't be able to meet rent without you."

Remus let out a laugh. "I'm pretty sure that this is _my_ flat and _you_ came knocking at _my_ door when that Samuel bloke broke up with you."

Marly let go of his hands and waved them in a dismissive manner. "Unimportant details." Her expression changed and her eyes turned serious. "Seriously, I want to be able to steal that sweater back from you."

"Marly, I'll be fine," Remus assured her, taking the sweatshirt once more. "I promise."

"Okay," Marly nodded, still looking unconvinced. With a heavy sigh, she managed to give him a smile. "Have fun."

"Oh, yes, loads," Remus rolled his eyes. "I'll see you soon."

As he turned to leave the room, Marly crawled back into her warm bed, preparing for another couple hours of sleep.

"I expect this room to be spotless by the time I get back," Remus said before leaving her alone, sending a toothy grin over his shoulder.

"Whatever you say, Mum," Marly replied, pulling her comforter back over her head.

* * *

Nearly twelve hours later, Marly was sitting at the dining room table that she had bought Remus for his last birthday - he had been whining about the finish on the old one - with the Daily Prophet in front of her. As she flipped through the pages, quickly scanning the headlines, she spun her finger over a cup of tea, the spoon following her finger.

She flipped the paper back to the front page and gave a disgusted sigh, seeing that the main headline was advertising the number of deaths there had been from a Death Eater attack that had taken place in Kent at nearly the exact same time Remus had left the flat.

Suddenly, there were three loud knocks at the front door, tearing Marly from her reading. Once she reached the door, she leaned forward and gazed out the peephole, only to see a giant emerald green eye staring back at her. Lily let out a loud laugh on the other side of the door.

"Did she look?" Marly heard Anna's voice, which was soon followed by loud laughter from the both of them.

Marly quickly unlocked the bolt and wrenched the door open. "Ha-ha, you're so funny."

"I know," Lily pushed past Marly and looking around the simple flat. "You two need some decorating done in here."

"Thank you for telling me that once again, Lily," Marly replied, returning to where she had been reading.

"There aren't enough pictures of me," Anna shrugged, closing the door behind her.

"There aren't any pictures period," Lily pointed out, going to the refrigerator and scoping out any potential snacks. "Where's Remus?"

"Dumbledore owled him around midnight and he had to go underground right away," Marly explained, not looking up from her newspaper. "He wasn't sure when he'd be back."

"Oh, that's bad luck," Anna said, crossing her arms as she sat down at another chair at the table. "Anyone we know die?"

Marly looked up and gave Anna an exasperated look before she said, "There was a Death Eater attack last night, but apparently only a family of Muggles died."

"Oh, James was at headquarters when it happened," Lily said, taking a pickle out of a large jar. "He went with Hagrid to sort everything out before Peter arrived with the rest of the Obliviator team."

"What did he say about it?" Anna asked.

"Apparently it was horrible," Lily made a face, and then took a bite from the pickle. Between chewing, she managed, "The house was completely gone, only a few bricks from the foundation still standing. The people were killed with Avada Kedavra, but I'm sure they were tortured first." She had a distinct look of distaste upon her face before saying, "That wouldn't be enough fun for them."

"Filthy blighters," Marly shook her head in aversion.

"Have you heard that they're talking about making it legal for Aurors to use the Unforgivables on Death Eaters now?" Anna asked.

"Mad-Eye is absolutely livid," Marly nodded. "He says that it'd make the Aurors just as bad as the Death Eaters."

"I agree with him," Lily commented, her lip still curled angrily.

"Anyways, enough with the news," Marly sighed, folding up her paper and turning to her tea, downing it quickly. "I'm quite sure that we have a mission to accomplish today."

"Yes, dresses," Lily recovered, looking at the last bit of pickle in her fingers, and then shoving it in her mouth.

"You're such a lady, Lily," Anna smirked.

"Where are we going?" Marly asked, getting to her feet.

"This shop in London my mum frequents," Lily sighed, leaning against the counter and crossing her arms. "She wanted to come, but I wouldn't have been able to stand hours of lecturing about how I've waited far too late to get the dresses and that James and I should have had a much longer engagement, and so on and so forth."

"That's what we're here for," Anna shrugged. "Honestly, Lily - only six months?"

"Thanks for your support," Lily rolled her eyes.

"Are we going incognito, then?" Marly asked, then noticing that both of the young women weren't wearing robes. "Well, that's just dandy. I'm going to take a sweatshirt from Remus's bedroom to replace the one he thought he could take this morning and then we can head out."

"Hurry up," Anna said impatiently. "I want to drink."

"Have you ever noticed that all we do is drink and shop?" Lily said as Anna pushed the door to Remus's bedroom open.

Remus's bedroom was the stark opposite of Marly's. While it was a bit messy from his quick flight, it was still loads more organized and cleaner than Marly's was. His bed was properly made, while hers was only made if Remus did it himself. The only cluttered part of the room was his desk, where he had dozens of books and papers strewn around the area because, as Marly told him on more than one occasion, he was a geek.

Marly turned to his closet, which had a spare piece of parchment taped to it. Upon further inspection, she saw that it was a note for her.

_'Marly,_

_'While reading this note, imagine my voice being very stern and serious. You know - that tone I can never manage to accomplish when I'm actually trying to tell you off._

_'Anything you take will be washed by you. In addition, yes, I did take those pants that you always want to wear - which is quite weird, even for you. If you lose anything, you will be severely punished._

_'Love, Remus_

_'PS: I'm completely serious. Stop laughing.'_

Marly grinned as she pulled the closet open, only to see the most organized closet she had ever stumbled upon. It was organized by garment and colour. Marly let out a sigh and rolled her eyes.

"We need to find you a life, Remus, darling," she mumbled under her breath, pulling on the sleeve of a dark green sweatshirt and pulled it over her head. "Or at least properly shagged."

* * *

"How about this one?"

"It's lovely, Lily," Anna sighed, her head rested against her sister's shoulder from their chairs in the bridal shop.

"Oh, come on, you guys," Lily complained. "We haven't been shopping that long."

"I beg to differ," Marly replied, her legs crossed daintily. "We've been here for four hours."

"Well, which ones did you like?" Lily crossed her arms, turning and gazing into the three-way mirror at the current dress she was wearing.

"To be honest, dear," the older shopkeeper spoke up, looking as though she only wanted the women to leave. "That one doesn't suit you."

"I agree with her," Marly nodded, pushing her sister off her and getting to her feet. She walked over to the rack of dresses Lily had tried on and, after a moment, pulled two off. One was strapless with a full A-lined skirt and beige detailing in the front that flared out through the skirt. The other had thin straps and a full skirt as well, but was detailed with silver sequins. "These two looked the best on you."

"Do you really think so?" Lily asked.

"This one," the shopkeeper said, pointing at the one with the beige detailing, "can have the colour of the detailing changed to match your bridesmaid dresses."

"Oh, that would be nice," Lily breathed. "I'm going to have to talk if over with my mum first, I think, just to see what she thinks."

"That might be a good idea," Marly nodded, glancing at the rack to where Marly and Anna had placed the gown they had picked out for the bridesmaids. Sheila and Katherine had put in their suggestions, but trusted Marly and Anna to pick as they couldn't make it to the shopping extravaganza. Marly and Anna had chosen a deep green, halter-style gown that ended just below the knee in only a half an hour.

"All right, Tracy," Lily smiled at the shopkeeper. "I'll get out of this dress and then we can get out of your hair."

As Lily retreated into the dressing room, Marly sat back down next to Anna, who was gazing longingly out the front window.

"What's up?" Marly asked her sister.

"Would you mind if we went to that pub Sirius works at again?" Anna asked. "You know, since we're dressed for it and all."

"He makes horrible drinks," Marly scrunched up her nose. "Why do you want to go there?"

"Because it's only a block away," Anna smirked. "Lily's shopping habits make me need a drink - good or bad."

"You know, I can hear you," Lily called out of the room.

"Why would I mind?" Marly asked, ignoring Lily.

"I didn't know how uncomfortable it would make you, seeing as Lily is just short of giving you a love potion so you'll fall for Sirius," Anna explained, a smile playing on her lips.

"You know, he is rather good looking," Marly mused, a far away expression on her face. "If I wasn't in this 'no men' lock down - "

"Oh, please, Marly," Anna rolled her eyes. "We don't actually expect you to not break that pact."

"Hence why I'm going to keep it," Marly replied, giving Anna a pointed look. "I can restrain myself just as well as the rest of you."

"Sure you can," Anna smirked.

"Okay, let's go," Lily burst out of the dressing room dramatically, striking a pose. When Marly and Anna only gave her a look, Lily recovered and called, "Thanks again, Tracy."

"Anytime, Lily," the shopkeeper gave her a warm smile. "Tell your mum I say hello."

"Of course," Lily nodded, following Marly and Anna out the door and down the street.

Once in the near empty pub, the three women sat themselves at the bar. Sirius was the only bartender there and was completely engrossed in the television, which was showing a commercial for a type of toothpaste. Marly cleared her throat loudly, startling him.

"Oh, hell, sorry," Sirius jumped, then, registering who it was, gave them a smirk and jerked his head toward the television. "They still astound me."

"That's right, you're pureblood," Marly nodded, who was half-Muggle.

"Ah, the noble and most ancient house of Black," Sirius replied, his expression on his face looking as though he had eaten something that tasted bad. "What can I get you ladies?"

Once he had gotten the women and himself a drink, he turned back to the three of them and opened his mouth to begin conversation. However, before he could say anything, Lily interrupted him.

"Hey, Anna, I need to talk to you about something," she said, sliding off her barstool. "Er…over there."

"That was terribly smooth, Lily," Anna shook her head in amusement, but grabbed her drink and followed Lily across the pub nonetheless.

Sirius gave Marly a questioning look, which made Marly laugh aloud.

"Lily is aiming to play a bit of a matchmaker," Marly explained, swirling her finger above her drink, causing the straw to spin, much as she had with her tea.

Sirius looked as though he was going to comment on Lily's behaviour, but then gazed down at her hand. Noticing, Marly quickly stopped, balling her hands together on her lap.

"I always forget when I'm in a Muggle place not to do little things like that," Marly flushed, explaining herself.

"No, it's not that," Sirius replied, looking impressed. "Not many people can do magic without their wands."

"Oh, yes, well," Marly flushed more, clearly quite embarrassed by the attention he was giving her. "I studied hard in Hogwarts."

"You can study as much as you want, but the only way you can actually put it to use depends on how strong your magic is," Sirius pointed out, giving her a smile. "Can you do other magic without your wand?"

Marly nodded numbly. "I don't usually advertise it, though."

"Why not?" Sirius asked, his eyes wide. "You'd probably be snatched up by the Ministry to be an Auror if they knew that."

"I know," Marly replied.

"Did you ever think about being an Auror?"

Marly nodded again. "That's what I wanted to be in Hogwarts, but I didn't get in."

"Are you serious?" Sirius's eyes widened. "I didn't get in either, but you were Head Girl!"

"Yeah, that's what I thought, too," Marly sighed. "But, I blanked on my written Defence NEWT and only got an Exceeds Expectation. It's the only one I didn't get an Outstanding on, which made me so mad."

Sirius let out a derisive snort. "That's it?"

"Shut it," Marly smiled. "I used to be quite the student."

"Obviously, if you were made Head Girl."

"James wasn't much of a student, if I remember correctly," Marly pointed out.

"It came easily for him, though," Sirius shrugged. "I'm not going to lie - it was easy for me as well." They were silent for a short moment before Sirius suggested, "I've been thinking about ditching this gig and reapplying. Why don't you reapply with me? Maybe actually mention that you are quite an extraordinary talent."

"Maybe," Marly sighed, then lowered her voice a bit. "To be honest, one of the main reasons I joined the Order was so I'd feel like an Auror fighting the Death Eaters and such."

"It's almost the same, isn't it?" Sirius agreed.

"Besides, Lily would probably kill me if I quit at St. Mungo's," Marly pointed out, taking a sip from her brandy.

"Speaking of the Healer turn matchmaker," Sirius smirked slyly, "are her efforts working on you as well as they are on me?"

"Perhaps," Marly replied nonchalantly, meeting his bright blue eyes with her own pale blue ones. "How about you?"

"You might say that."

* * *

_**Author's Note:** I definitely wrote this in, like, a two hour time frame, haha. I love writing when I know exactly what I want to do with my characters, rather than just a vague outline. I would have had this done sooner, but I'm writing two other stories (one RLOC that is under this pen name and the other a co-written SBOC/RLOC under Kamers of Carp) so I'm trying hard to keep with all of them. I'm trying to have a new chapter up once a week for each story, but you know how these things go..lives tend to get in the way with fanfiction._

_Anyways, thanks for reading and please let me know what you think!_


	5. Candy Man

_**Disclaimer: **This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Candy Man" is by Christina Aguilera and I do not own it in any way. "Utopia" is by Sir Thomas More.  
_

**Desperado  
Chapter Four: Candy Man**

_He really had me working up an appetite   
He had tattoos up and down his arms   
There's nothing more dangerous than a boy with charm_

_"You never have war unless you choose it, and peace is always more to be considered than war."_

CRASH!

Marly looked up from her book, Utopia, nonchalantly and glanced out the door from the headquarters' library. Straining her ears, she thought she could hear someone swearing under their breath from the foyer. Not entirely in the mood for company, she returned to her book.

Since Remus had left to go underground, Marly found herself at headquarters more often. Part of the reason was because she was bored without Remus at the flat, but it was mostly because of the mess that had begun to accumulate in the week he had been gone. Without Remus there to clean non-stop, Marly realized that she wasn't exactly the most cleanly and organized person in the world.

CRASH!

"Bloody hell!"

Marly looked up once again, the swearing much louder than it had been before. With a resigned sigh, she used her bookmark to hold the place she had stopped at and got to her feet, following her ears to the origin of the noises.

Before she knew it, Marly found herself at the entrance to the kitchen. She observed the scene with an amused expression on her face. It looked as though Sirius was desperately trying to make some sort of food, but couldn't find the correct pan, as the contents of the cupboard were strewn around the kitchen tile. His head was completely hidden within the cupboard.

"Looking for something?" Marly asked, stepping over the pots and pans that varied in just about every size and shape.

Surprised, Sirius jerked his head upward, smacking it hard on the top of the cupboard. He let out another swear, making Marly drop to her knees so she was at eye level with him.

"Sorry," she apologized quickly as Sirius gingerly touched the top of his head.

"It's all right," Sirius replied, rubbing the spot for a moment and then looking at his fingers, as though he expected to see blood. "I didn't think anyone else was here."

"I was in the library," Marly explained. "Are you all right?"

"I've been in worse spots," Sirius admitted. He looked around and an annoyed expression filled his face. "I'm trying to find a frying pan."

"Uh…," Marly looked around and lifted up a small frying pan that was just next to him. "This is a frying pan."

"No, it isn't," Sirius said indignantly. "A frying pan has holes in it."

"What are you talking about?" Marly asked, raising an eyebrow. "You use a frying pan on the stove."

Sirius let out a laugh and gave Marly a look. "No, you use a frying pan to strain stuff."

"That's a colander," Marly corrected, smirking at Sirius. "You didn't take Muggle Studies at Hogwarts, did you?"

"I took it my third year and decided that I didn't need to know anything else," Sirius shrugged.

"Maybe you should have taken it," Marly commented, getting to her feet and walking over to a different cupboard. She jerked it open and took out a white colander. "Is this what you're looking for?"

"Yes," Sirius nodded, getting to his feet as well and taking it from her. "Thank you."

"Why do you need a colander anyways?" Marly asked, pulling herself onto the counter.

"I want some spaghetti," Sirius shrugged.

"Why don't you just, you know, wave your wand?" Marly implored. "You don't exactly seem knowledgeable when it comes to the art of Muggle culinary."

"I made a bet with James that I could go a week without magic," Sirius explained, looking down at the strainer and biting his lip.

"Do you even know how to make the spaghetti?" Marly asked, noticing a grocery bag on the counter.

Following her gaze, Sirius said, "I bought noodles and sauce, but I'm a little clueless after that."

"Well, my dad's a Muggle," Marly said, jumping down from the counter, looking around, and picking up a fairly decent sized saucepan. "He always made us dinner when my mum had to work late, so he would teach Anna and me how to not rely on our wands and magic." That said, she pulled out her wand and waved it over the mess Sirius made, causing the pots and pans to fly back into the cupboard without so much of a sound. "Well, not _completely_ rely on our wands."

"Are you volunteering to make me dinner?" Sirius asked as Marly turned on the sink and began to fill the pot with water.

"You leave me with little choice, Mr. Black," Marly flashed him a smile over her shoulder. "I can't just stand by and watch a train wreck in the kitchen."

"You don't seem to have much faith in me," Sirius pointed out with a playful smile.

"Doesn't look that way, does it?" Marly asked, turning on the gas on the stove and waving her hand over the burner so it ignited.

"There you go showing off again," Sirius said jokingly as Marly put the saucepan on the burner.

"Sorry," Marly apologized. "It's a bad habit."

"How much can you actually do?" Sirius asked as Marly pulled another pan out of the cupboard and ignited another burner the same way.

"Oh, I don't know," Marly sighed, running her finger along the top of the tin can that held the spaghetti sauce to cut it open and poured the contents into the pan.

"Sure you do," Sirius pressed. "Can you do big things?"

"What do you mean 'big things'?" Marly asked, standing back and waiting for the water to being to boil. "I can't make the entirety of England to ignite in flame, if that's what you mean."

Sirius let out a laugh. "Can you make the dining room table levitate?"

Marly turned and held out her hand. She furrowed her brow, concentrating on the table and what she wanted it to do. After a few seconds, the table lurched upward, knocking over one of the chairs. She turned and looked at Sirius.

"Seems that way," she said with a smirk, registering the impressed look on his face. She withdrew her hand and the table dropped back to the floor. "Any other tests?"

"No, no," Sirius shook his head, still looking quite surprised. "I'm envious, what can I say?"

"It's mighty handy around the house," Marly shrugged, looking into the pot and then back at Sirius. "It's nice not to have to carry my wand around me at all times when I'm cleaning or cooking or whatever. Remus gets quite jealous."

"Moony tends to get jealous easily," Sirius nodded as Marly backed up, leaning against the island in the middle of the kitchen.

"He does, doesn't he?" Marly mused. "I suppose it's part of his charm."

"Something like that," Sirius smiled, allowing Marly's stomach to flop slightly.

After about forty-five minutes, a spaghetti dinner for two was set at the table. After exhausting such games as "I'm shopping in Diagon Alley and I'm buying apples," they had decided on playing Truth - a game Marly had always shirked out of playing with her dormmates, but didn't mind playing with Sirius.

"Cantaloupe."

"You don't like cantaloupe?" Sirius asked, his jaw slack.

"It's disgusting," Marly said simply. "You like it? And no, that doesn't count as my question, before you try to swindle me again."

"It's my favourite fruit!" Sirius replied, still shocked. "And, I'm pretty sure that was your question."

"Was not," Marly replied, spinning her fork in her pasta and smirking at Sirius.

"I refuse to answer any question you might say then," Sirius said indignantly.

"Then I do believe you fold!" Marly exclaimed triumphantly. "I win."

"Okay, okay," Sirius sighed, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms. "Ask me a question."

Marly laughed at how broken up he was being, then asked, "Do your tattoos mean anything?"

Sirius looked down at his arms, which each had black tattoos covering them. "Other than that I'm terribly hardcore?"

"Well, no doubt they just scream hardcore," Marly nodded. "Do you have a naked woman somewhere that I can't see?"

"Honestly, I think that they were just my last hurrah before I skived off on my family," Sirius said thoughtfully, as though he had never really thought about it before.

"What do you mean about - "

"I'm pretty sure you already asked your question," Sirius interrupted. "That would make it my turn."

"Fine," Marly pouted, shoving her fork into her mouth.

"What is your life motto?" Sirius asked, looking at Marly appraisingly.

Marly swallowed hard, hesitating before she answered. She had been banking on him only asking the simple favourite colour and where are you from type of questions. "Honestly?"

"Honestly."

"Well," she started, taking a deep breath. "Dance in the rain just to get soaked. Call a friend just because you care. Smile just because you can. Laugh just to make people stare."

"It even rhymes!" Sirius exclaimed, then gave her a coy smile to show he was kidding.

"Well, I think it just about covers every base of me," Marly admitted, nodding. "I wrote it when I went through my teenage angst years."

"That's pretty upbeat for being angst," Sirius smirked.

"You know what I meant," Marly rolled her eyes. "My Hogwarts years weren't terribly kind to me. You see - " She stopped herself, then grinned evilly. "I think I'll leave that for a different question, Mr. Black."

"Touché, Miss McKinnon," Sirius nodded. "Let's have it."

"Have you ever been in love?"

"I thought you were going to ask about my family!"

"I decided to save that until later," Marly smirked, then repeated herself. "Have you ever been in love?"

Sirius looked at Marly thoughtfully, then said, "Once. Her name was - well, is, I should say, as she's still alive and all - Jennifer Barrette."

"Never heard of her," Marly admitted.

"You wouldn't have," Sirius nodded. "She went to Beauxbatons and is a few years younger than myself. Anyways, she's a great girl and all, but we were better off as friends. However, she never really saw it that way and I haven't seen her since we broke up."

"Well, that's no good," Marly bit her lip.

"Such is life," Sirius shrugged. "Anyways, what's with you and Moony?"

"What about us?"

"Well, you two are awful chummy, aren't you?"

Marly let out a laugh. "Please - we've been best friends since primary. We kind of drifted a bit once we were both in Hogwarts with us being in different houses and years, but we still managed to stay friends, hence why I live with him now."

"So you two never - "

"Despite that that is a second question, no," Marly answered.

"Oh, well, Anna said - "

"Don't listen to a word my sister says," Marly interrupted again. "She has a knack for overanalyzing situations that aren't related to her in any way whatsoever, no matter how much she should leave her nose out of it."

"Don't we all?" Sirius asked.

"Anna more so," Marly rolled her eyes. "Honestly, I would've thought she'd be better off as a psychiatrist of some sort rather than playing Quidditch."

"Professionally?" Sirius asked, his jaw dropping.

Marly nodded. "Yeah, she's Seeker for the Holyhead Harpies."

"No kidding?"

"Yeah," Marly acquiesced. "I thought everyone knew."

"Well, she was brilliant at school and all, but I didn't know that she'd gone on after," Sirius nodded impressively.

"Would you like to go to a game?" Marly asked, then almost wished to take it back in case it sounded a bit too forward. "I mean, Lily, James, and I are going to a match next week Friday - "

"The 13th?" Sirius asked. When Marly nodded he said, "That's my birthday."

"Well, think of it as my birthday present to you," Marly smiled.

"In that case, I guess I have to go," Sirius shrugged. "You're giving me very little say in this matter."

"Oh, well, if it's that much of a chore - "

"No, no," Sirius said hastily, throwing me a grin. "It's either spend an evening of Quidditch with you, Mom, and Dad or resign to a night by myself."

"What a way to bring in a new year," Marly smirked. "You're going to be, what - "

"Twenty," Sirius supplied. "Merlin, I didn't realize how old that sounds until just now."

Marly laughed. "At least you're not turning twenty-one."

"Yeah, that would be loads worse," Sirius shot back.

"Ah, just the people I was hoping to see."

Marly and Sirius jumped in an almost comical manner at the sudden interruption. They both spun around in their chairs to see Dumbledore striding toward them, smiling at them.

"Hello, Professor," Marly turned. "Fancy some spaghetti?"

"No thank you, Marlene," Dumbledore put up a hand. "I just finished the most wonderful dinner at Hogwarts. Tonight was roast beef with the creamiest mashed potatoes I've ever tasted."

"I think that's what I miss most about Hogwarts," Sirius admitted, a dreamy, faraway look in his eye. "The food was spectacular."

"The Halloween feast was always my favourite," Marly divulged, a smile playing on her lips.

"Only the best house elves," Dumbledore nodded. "However, a discussion of food is not what brings me here today."

Dumbledore drew himself up a chair and sat on the opposite side of the table than Marly and Sirius. He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the oak table and gazed at the two with his fingers lightly pressed together.

"I'm sure the both of you recall when I spoke to you about a mission," Dumbledore began, his tone very serious. "I assume that the both of you are still quite interested in following through with my request?"

"Of course, Professor," Marly nodded, looking at Sirius warily, who had an expression of utmost concentration on his face.

"Good, good," Dumbledore nodded his head. "Now, I chose the two of you for this mission for specific reasons that I am quite sure you will understand momentarily. As always, you have every right to decline the mission if you see fit.

"Now, Sirius, is it safe for me to presume that you haven't spoken to your younger brother, Regulus, in quite some time?"

Sirius made a derisive noise from the back of his throat and his eyes flashed angrily. "I haven't heard of or from him since I left Hogwarts."

"Yes, that is what James told me," Dumbledore nodded. "Sadly, our sources have been able to confirm on multiple accounts that he, Regulus, I mean, has become a Death Eater."

"You're joking," Sirius said, though Dumbledore's grave tone and facial expression told him that he was quite serious. "Voldemort took that git in his ranks?"

"It seems that way," Dumbledore nodded, a slight smile on his face, but it quickly disappeared. "I have thought nearly a fortnight about this situation and whether or not to act on it, but it seems as though it is almost too good of a chance not to.

"Sirius and Marlene, I would like it if, on a few occasions, trail Regulus Black and see if there is a chance of picking up any sort of information from him," Dumbledore concluded.

Marly nodded, but noticed that Sirius was looking less than pleased on her left.

"Uh, Professor, no offence, but this is quite a flawed plan," Sirius said frankly, leaning back in his chair and folding his arms across his chest. "In case you haven't noticed, even if I really wanted them to my family isn't about to welcome me back with open arms - Regulus least of all."

"I do realize this, Sirius," Dumbledore nodded slowly. "However, I am not asking you to become friendly with them. I only wish to see if you, as his brother, might be able to find some sort of information."

Sirius still had a sceptical look on his face, but nodded nonetheless.

"Now, Marlene," Dumbledore turned to address her, "as I said, I chose the both of you for specific reasons and I was not lying. Not too long ago, I was informed that you have some certain talents that you are far too modest in using."

"Were you, Professor?" Marly asked, giving Sirius an annoyed look.

Sirius held up his hands in protest. "Don't look at me! I only found out at the pub last week."

Dumbledore smiled at the two, then continued, "As I was saying, I think that you will find that these talents of yours will be exemplified once in a real situation and not just in opening cans of spaghetti sauce."

"We'll see, Professor," Marly said quietly, her face flushing.

"I do believe that is all, then," Dumbledore nodded. "I will alert the two of you in advance as to when you can expect your first mission to take place."

"Thank you, Professor," Sirius said, getting to his feet to shake the Headmaster's hand.

"It was my pleasure, Sirius," Dumbledore smiled at the both, then glided out of the room.

Once they were sure he was gone, Marly let out a long sigh, then gave Sirius a sideways glance.

"So, this should be fun."

"Oh, loads," Sirius nodded, chuckling quietly. "To think that we have to devote time to my manky brother - "

"You don't seem terribly chuffed about this," Marly pointed out the obvious. "Is it time for me to break out the family question?"

"I do believe that it is your turn," Sirius gave her an amused look.

"Well, let's have it, then," Marly crossed her arms over her chest. "What's all the negativity radiating from your family?"

"I'm sure you've heard the hordes of rumours," Sirius raised an eyebrow. "We Blacks aren't exactly unheard of."

"No offence, but I think everyone in the wizarding world has heard at least something about the Black family," Marly pointed out. "However, I'm not one for rabbiting, so I wouldn't mind hearing from the source."

"Honestly, I'm sure that anything you've heard is probably quite true," Sirius said, his face quite sad. "My parents are big supporters of Voldemort, although they aren't what I would call Death Eaters. I'm sure my mum is just overjoyed that Regulus went and signed himself up, however. I'm sure she was more than keen when the prat came home and showed off his own tattoo."

Sirius sighed heavily and looked down at his arms. "Well, growing up I ate every word my parents said - everything from blood traitors to Mudbloods, pardon the term. Once I got to Hogwarts, though, I was sorted into Gryffindor and met up with Prongs and the others. I learned pretty fast how daft it is to think that just because I come from a family of wizards makes me any better than someone who wasn't."

Marly nodded. "I think that was one of the harder things for me during Hogwarts. The Head Boy my year was a Slytherin and although I was Ravenclaw and that was loads better than Gryffindor to him, he couldn't understand why someone with a Muggle for a father could actually have talent."

"Exactly," Sirius agreed. "Anyway, to make a long story short, I ran away when I was sixteen and that didn't please dear old mummy too much, so she disowned me."

"No!" Marly exclaimed, her eyes wide in shock.

Sirius let out a laugh that almost sounded like a bark. "Oh, Marly, it isn't as though my mum was an angel. She could've done worse things, in my own opinion. Personally, I was quite all right with an excuse to not have contact with them. It made things easier for me in the long run."

"I suppose," Marly nodded.

"And, well, all in all, that's why I don't get along with my family," Sirius shrugged. "We are on quite different sides of reasoning. You'll have that, though."

Sirius's blue eyes grew somewhat blank, as though he was recalling something. Marly opened her mouth to inquire, but he interrupted.

"It's my turn, though," Sirius said. "Why are you so shy about your powers?"

The question caught Marly off guard and she hesitated a moment before answering.

"Wow, well," Marly swallowed hard. "I suppose a lot of it comes from my upbringing. My mum and dad weren't fond of my sister and me showing off. Although we both have radically different talents, they were afraid that with us being girls and being so near each other in age that we'd constantly compete."

"Sometimes a little healthy competition can drive you to become better, though," Sirius pointed out.

"I agree," Marly nodded. "However, being in Ravenclaw made it very easy to find my competition. We really were some of the more clever students at Hogwarts, if I do say so myself."

"Naturally," Sirius smirked. "Still, you should make use of your powers. Playing off of what Dumbledore said, you could shock yourself with just how strong you are."

"Honestly, I think that's another big reason I'm so shy with them," Marly admitted, surprised that she was voicing this secret to someone she hardly knew when she had never even admitted it to Remus or Lily. "As you said yourself, not many people can do wandless magic, so not a terribly lot is known about it. While I would love to see just how much I can do and how powerful I might be, I'm frightened of the toll it could take on me."

"I'm afraid I don't completely follow," Sirius bit his lip. "Do you mean you think you could harm yourself?"

"Not just to me, but to the people around me," Marly nodded. "When I first joined the Order, I told Dumbledore that I would only join given the promise that I wouldn't have to do any large missions that included going out into the field. That's also why I haven't reapplied to be an Auror. I know it seems like cowardice, but I'm frightened that maybe if I do channel all of the power that I think I have I won't be able to control it. What if I really can ignite all of England in flames?"

After a split moment of silence, Sirius nodded his head. "I understand what you're saying."

"I know it's sickeningly noble and all," Marly smirked, "but I wouldn't be able to live with myself if someone was hurt or killed because of something I couldn't help doing."

The two fell silent again, each in their own thoughts. The only sound in the house was from the cuckoo clock sounding off from the library, signalling that it was midnight.

"I know it's your turn, but could I ask one more question?" Sirius asked suddenly.

"Just this once," Marly agreed.

"You said that you asked Dumbledore not to put you into the field when you joined the Order," Sirius mused. "However, you agreed to take this mission regarding my brother. Why is that?"

Marly smiled and gave him a pointed look. "I think you know why I agreed."

* * *

_**Author's Note:** This is pretty lengthy, but I didn't want things to hang over into the next chapter. Do you forgive me? Of course you do. Anyways, thanks for reading and please let me know what you think, all right? All right._


	6. Dancing Through Life

_**Disclaimer: **This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Dancing Through Life" is from Wicked and I do not own it in any way._

**Desperado  
Chapter Five: Dancing Through Life**

_No need to tough it  
When you can slough it off as I do  
Nothing matters  
But knowing nothing matters  
It's just life  
So keep dancing through_

"I can't believe you didn't even last six months," Lily grinned, glancing at her reflection in a large mirror hanging in the sitting room of her house she shared with James.

"You know, Lily, for being so dead set on getting us together, you're pretty quick to judge."

"It's what I'm here for."

"It's not like I'm with him or anything," Marly replied, crossing her legs and watching her best friend from across the room. "We haven't kissed or shagged or anything of the like."

"You're taking him to a Quidditch game," Lily met Marly's eyes through her reflection in the mirror, trying to give her stick straight hair some volume. "If that isn't dating, I don't know what is."

"In Marly's defence, she's also taking us to this game," James spoke up, striding into the room from the kitchen, a cup of tea in his hand. "I don't believe she's dating us - unless something happened and I didn't realize it."

"Good point, James," Marly nodded, ignoring the second half of his statement.

"However, that doesn't excuse how excited he's been for this all week," James turned on her, sitting down in the loveseat next to Marly.

"He's a huge Cannons fan," Marly said simply. It was Sirius's birthday and the three were preparing to meet him at the Quidditch pitch for the Holyhead Harpies and Chudley Cannons match as Marly had promised.

"And how do you know that?" Lily asked, abandoning her efforts and sitting down next to James.

"Because I actually listen when people talk, you toerag," Marly huffed.

"I think someone is getting a little shirty," James said under his breath to Lily, as though Marly couldn't hear him.

"I'm beginning to pick up on that as well," Lily replied out of the side of her mouth.

"You two are unbelievable," Marly huffed.

"Oh, Marly, don't be upset," Lily laughed, shooting her a smile.

"I won't be upset if you both admit that there are no romantic feelings between Sirius and me," Marly crossed her arms.

"See, that would be a lie," James shrugged. "I know for a fact that Sirius has more than platonic feelings regarding you."

"Really?" Marly asked in spite of herself.

James only smiled in his annoying James fashion, so Marly made a face at him. An awkward silence fell upon them and was broken when their Grandfather clock chimed six times.

"All right," James announced, finishing his tea and getting to his feet. "Padfoot should be there by now."

"When did you tell him we'd be meeting him?" Marly asked, getting to her feet and straightening her robes down her front.

"Half past five," James replied, striding across the sitting room and into the kitchen.

"What?" Marly asked. "But, then he'll have been there ages ago!"

"You obviously haven't experienced Padfoot's punctuality," James called out of the kitchen, the teacup tinkling as he set it in the sink. "Believe me; I've known him for nearly ten years."

"It's true," Lily nodded. "I think most of the detentions he had in Hogwarts were actually because he was late for the original."

"I'll make note of that," Marly replied, unable to keep a smile off her face.

"You will, will you?" Lily asked, her eyes dancing.

"Yes," Marly replied shortly. "Honestly, Lily, someday I'm going to - "

"I think now would be a good time to go, don't you think?" James interrupted before Marly could describe exactly what she was going to do to Lily.

"Good as any," Lily smiled and the three Apparated to the Quidditch pitch.

"There he is," James said, stepping out of the Apparating area as more people began to appear. "How good am I?"

"Where?" Marly asked, looking around the crowd. "I don't - "

"You're looking the wrong way," James smirked, crossing his arms and looking up into the sky.

"Is he on a broom?" Marly asked, shading her eyes with her hand. Her jaw dropped. "Is that a flying motorbike?"

"He always has to make an entrance," James huffed as Sirius landed a few yards away from them, rolling to a stop just in front.

"Lily, why didn't you tell me he has a motorbike?" Marly asked, her eyes still wide in shock.

"Why would I have?" Lily asked, raising an eyebrow. "It doesn't exactly come up in casual conversation."

"Well, you've told me everything else about him," Marly rolled her eyes, watching as James and Sirius hugged each other like brothers.

"I have not," Lily denied, walking forward and hugging Sirius much like James had. "How was the ride, Sirius?"

"Beautiful," Sirius grinned, pulling his helmet off his head and shaking his hair to rid himself of helmet hair. "In case you haven't noticed, the weather is spectacular today."

"I had," Lily smiled, then noticed that Sirius was looking past her to Marly.

"Hi," Sirius said with an uncharacteristic shyness to his voice.

"Happy birthday," Marly replied, pulling her hair behind her ear. "Er, nice bike."

"Thanks," Sirius grinned, looking at it. "She's my pride and joy."

"Marly, didn't you break up with that one guy - what was his name, Edmund? - because he bought a motorbike?" Lily asked, batting her eyelashes innocently.

"I didn't break up with him because he bought the bike," Marly gave Lily a sceptical look. "I broke up with him because he was using the bike to find women that weren't me."

"Well, I thought you didn't like motorbikes," Lily continued, obviously not relenting.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Lily."

"I think it's time we caught some Quidditch, aye?" James put in, steering Lily around and lowering his voice. "Do you want them to get together or not?"

Ignoring them, Marly walked next to Sirius and joined the queue to the pitch. Giving him a smile, she asked, "Are you excited?"

"Yes," Sirius nodded fervently. "I haven't seen the Cannons play in ages."

"You do know that your free tickets are from the Harpies, though," Marly smirked. "You can't go cheering on the opposite team."

"Not to worry," Sirius returned her smirk. "I'll be a closet Cannons fan tonight."

"It'll be our little secret," Marly nodded.

* * *

"That was bloody brilliant!" Sirius repeated for the umpteenth time that night, his eyes still aglow from the Quidditch game, despite that it had ended nearly an hour earlier. The Harpies had managed a narrow victory, much to Sirius's dislike. However, that didn't soften his amazement at the live professional Quidditch. "And Anna - that dive you did was amazing."

"Thanks," Anna blushed, glancing away.

"Oh, don't even begin to pretend you're modest," Marly spoke up, giving her sister a grin. "You've been stealing dad's broom since you learned to walk."

"Yeah, to get away from you," Anna shot back, elbowing her good-naturedly.

"And, Sheila," Sirius breathed, turning to address their other friend. "It makes me proud to know that I was a Beater alongside you back at Hogwarts."

"Anything to please you, Sirius," Sheila replied with a smile.

"I'd hate to do this, but James and I need to be going," Lily spoke up, glancing at her fiancé. "I have an early shift tomorrow and I'd like to get at least a few hours of sleep."

"That doesn't mean I have to go home," James whined, giving Lily an annoyed look.

"Yes, it does," Lily replied, turning to look him square in the eye. "It's only ten o'clock right now and I don't have to be in to work until seven."

"Your point?" James asked.

"I said a few hours of sleep."

"Lily and I have to be going," James said hastily, giving a grin to the others.

"We have to go anyways," Anna spoke up, jerking her head at Sheila. "We're late for the post-game meeting as it is."

"See you lot later," Sheila nodded before the two hurried back to the stadium.

The remaining four began to walk over to Apparating area, which was right where Sirius had parked his bike. As they were walking, Sirius pulled a Muggle lighter out of his pocket and began playing with it.

"Oh, Sirius," Lily said in a near scolding voice. "Do you still smoke?"

"Maybe," Sirius replied, raising an eyebrow. "Is that a problem, Miss Evans?"

"Not for me," Lily shook her head. "However, Marly doesn't like it when people smoke."

"Lily!" Marly exclaimed, giving her best friend a scandalous look.

"What?"

"Will you cut that out?" Lily asked innocently.

"You keep putting words into my mouth," Marly huffed, looking away.

"I do not," Lily protested, her mouth falling open. "James, have I been putting words into Marly's mouth?"

"I'm afraid you have, love," James said in a tone that suggested he might be regretting telling the truth.

They came to a stop and Lily and James stepped into the Apparating area. Marly was still glowering at Lily, but James chose to ignore it.

"We'll see you two later," James sighed, giving Marly an apologetic look.

"Bye," Sirius replied, holding up a hand in retreat.

"She makes me so mad sometimes," Marly sulked.

"Well, she's gone now," Sirius gave a grin. "Personally, I don't have to be home any time soon. Would you like to catch something to eat with me?"

"You want to spend your birthday with little old me?" Marly asked, thoughts of Lily leaving her almost instantly. "How sweet."

"Yes, well, everyone else was busy," Sirius shot back, busying himself with his motorbike. "I know a great place maybe a few minutes away from here."

"Sounds spectacular," Marly nodded.

"Here," Sirius said, waving his wand and drawing a helmet out of thin air.

"You're joking," Marly replied, raising an eyebrow. "You want me to ride that?"

"So, you don't like motorbikes," Sirius said pointedly.

"What - oh," Marly acknowledged, remembering the conversation from earlier. "Lily doesn't know what she's talking about. I've never ridden on one before - a flying one on top of it."

"Yeah, there aren't many flying ones," Sirius replied, smiling fondly at his bike. "Put this on."

"Isn't it breaking a whole score of laws?" Marly asked, not taking the helmet.

"No, I bought it from a Wizarding company," Sirius shook his head. "Completely legal."

"Are you sure about that?"

"Take this."

Marly heaved a great sigh before putting the helmet on. "I'd much rather Apparate, you know."

"You don't know where we're going," Sirius replied, following her in suit with his own helmet. "You'd probably splinch and I wouldn't want to have to find your random body parts around the countryside."

"Excuse me," Marly replied indignantly, not wanting to know how ridiculous her hair looked sticking out from under the helmet. "I've been Apparating since I was thirteen."

"Well, excuse me, then."

"My mum was pretty upset when she found out," Marly noted, watching Sirius get on the bike and tentatively approaching it.

"You need to get on," Sirius replied, noticing her hesitation.

"What if I fall off?" Marly asked.

"I won't let you fall."

Marly took a deep breath and quickly scrambled onto the bike. She wrapped her arms around Sirius's stomach.

"Breathing is always a helpful thing in everyday life," Sirius said pointedly.

"Sorry," Marly apologized, letting up on her grip slightly.

"Not a problem," Sirius replied, turning the motor over and revving the engine. He raised his voice and added, "I don't mind."

* * *

"…and there he was - just outside her room," Sirius finished, his voice highly dramatic. "The ghost of the man and his dog, his umbrella balanced on his shoulder."

Marly stared at Sirius in disbelief, her mouth lax.

"What?" Sirius asked, looking hurt.

"That was the worst scary story I've ever heard," Marly replied, shaking her head.

"I'd like to hear a better one," Sirius crossed his arms as the two began their tenth lap around the park across from Marly's flat.

"Any would be better than that," Marly shook her head again.

"Okay, my turn," Sirius changed the subject, furrowing his brow. "Why does Lily put words into your mouth?"

"Because she's bloody controlling," Marly replied instantly.

"I could have told you that," Sirius replied with a snort. "Have you seen what she did to Prongs?"

Marly let out a laugh, then sighed. "It's not just Lily, though. Remus and Anna can be that way sometimes as well. I used to be quite the goody-two-shoes growing up, in case you never caught on when I was continuously putting you into detention - "

"Thanks for that, by the way."

"Builds character," Marly replied, then continued. "But in the years since I've been out of Hogwarts, I've been trying desperately to change my image and become more me. I like the real me and wish that people wouldn't make it so hard for me to bust out. I'm really a low maintenance kind of person and enjoy dancing through life and living it one day at a time. I'm sick of hiding behind my books and insecurities."

"You? Insecure?" Sirius asked in disbelief.

"You didn't know me very well during Hogwarts," Marly pointed out, her eyes wide as she shook her head slowly. "I was about twenty pounds heavier than I am now, had these enormously horrible glasses, and my hair was worse than it is now. Plus, I was smart."

"Oh, never a good combination," Sirius chuckled.

"Exactly. I hid behind my grades and was afraid that if anyone actually got to know me they'd think that my whole personality was a complete façade. Now, however, I'm tired of everyone thinking that I'm exactly the way I was when I was seventeen."

"Honestly, I feel the same way sometimes," Sirius nodded, uncrossing his arms and letting them swing at his sides. "While I'm still as amazingly mischievous as I was in Hogwarts, I'm not nearly as much of a womanizer as I was."

"That's good to hear," Marly smirked. "One of my roommates was completely smitten with you. I swear, she cried at least once a week because you didn't look at her right."

"Yeah," Sirius gave Marly a sheepish grin, running his fingers through his hair. "I'm not exactly proud of who I was a few years ago."

"Looks like we're both trying to achieve the same thing," Marly pointed out.

"Well, we can help each other, then," Sirius nodded. "Merlin knows Prongs would never let me hear the end of it."

"All right, my turn," Marly interrupted the conversation, completely steering it off course. "I've been meaning to ask you - why do you lot call each other those nicknames?"

"What?" Sirius asked, looking surprised.

"Well, Remus is Moony," Marly started, working it out in her head. "But, that one's obvious since he's a werewolf and all. Then James is Prongs and Peter is something about a tail - "

"Wormtail," Sirius supplied.

"Yeah, that," Marly nodded. "And you're, what, Padfoot?"

"That's right."

"I don't get it," Marly replied simply. "Aren't nicknames supposed to be relating to you in some way?"

Sirius hesitated, glancing at Marly, then away again. He swallowed hard, unsure if he should give up the game or tell her the truth.

"You do realize that you now need to say something completely off the wall or I won't believe you," Marly said after a few moments silence on Sirius's part.

"Well, fine," Sirius sighed. "You have to promise not to tell anyone."

"Sure," Marly nodded, smirking as Sirius came to a stop and glanced around as though someone would be in the deserted park at midnight.

"When we found out about Moony's problem, Prongs and I decided that we needed to do something to help him since we're his friends and all," Sirius launched into the story, a smile playing on his face as he recalled. "By our third year we'd figured it out - we'd become Animagi."

Marly let out an impressed gasp. "Are you serious? How old were you when you managed that?"

"Fifteen," Sirius nodded, a grin breaking on his face. "Honestly, I couldn't believe that we'd managed it, but James and I really are pretty talented when it comes to magic."

"I think I saw a little ego on your robes," Marly joked.

"Anyways, I turn into this huge black dog," Sirius continued. "I'll show you sometime."

"Oh, I get it," Marly nodded. "Padfoot."

"Yes, and James turns into a stag and Peter a rat."

"That is terribly impressive," Marly smiled at him, an awestruck look on her face. "I mean, I've always thought about how great it would be to be an Animagus, but I haven't had the time to actually go through the Ministry and studying the magic."

"Well, we didn't exactly go through the Ministry," Sirius replied coyly.

"Somehow I didn't think they'd approve a bunch of thirteen-year-olds," Marly let out a laugh, beginning to walk toward her flat with Sirius next to her.

"You have to swear you won't tell anyone, of course," Sirius said seriously.

"Of course," Marly nodded, meeting his eye. "Besides, who am I going to tell? Remus?"

"Somehow I think he knows," Sirius shrugged. "One more question before I take off, though."

"What might that be?"

"If you were an Animagus, what do you think your animal form would be?"

Marly thought for a moment before saying, "Probably something dreadfully useless like a fish of some sort. What do you think?"

"Is that your question?"

"Sure."

"I'll bet you're a penguin," Sirius joked, coming to a stop in front of his bike.

"Oh, that would be wonderful," Marly nodded. "What with the plethora of icebergs in England."

They stood awkwardly for a few moments before Sirius said, "Well, you should Floo me if you can't sleep."

Marly laughed before saying, "All right."

"Or, you know, if you wake up in the middle of night from thoughts of me."

"Of course."

"Or if you see the sketchy ghost with the dog and umbrella."

"Don't worry, I will."

"I'll Apparate right over and kick his arse if he shows up at your flat."

"You'd save me from the undead? How chivalrous."

"You know I would," Sirius gave Marly a cocky grin. "Thank you for a wonderful birthday."

"My pleasure," Marly gave him a smile. "Good night."

As Marly walked toward her flat, she fumbled in her robe pocket looking for her keys. She noticed that the flat was dark, meaning Remus hadn't come home yet. With a disappointed sigh, she pushed the key through the lock and nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw Sirius standing next to her.

"Bloody hell, Sirius," Marly breathed, her heart beating rapidly for more than one reason.

"I forgot something," Sirius replied as Marly turned to face him, the key hanging out of the lock lazily.

"What's that?"

Before Marly could say anything else, Sirius bent down and let his lips graze hers for a moment. Then, without thinking, Marly lifted herself onto her toes to meet him, returning the kiss. Before it could last too long, though, Marly backed away.

"Oh, Sirius, I can't do this."

"What? Why?"

"I know it's dumb, but that stupid bet I made with Lily and the others - "

Sirius interrupted her with a loud laugh. "Honestly?"

"I know it seems daft," Marly sighed, playing with the end of a clump of her hair sheepishly and not meeting his eyes. "It's just - I want to prove her wrong for once."

Sirius nodded, his eyes still amused. "I understand."

"Do you really?" Marly asked, biting her lip. "I don't want you to think I don't feel the same way about you because, honestly, I do."

"Well, I'm glad to hear that," Sirius smiled, folding his arms and leaning against the doorframe of Marly's flat. "Don't worry - I'll wait for you."

"Is that a promise?" Marly asked as a sceptical eyebrow rose.

"Marauder's honour," Sirius replied, raising his right hand in front of him.

"Oh, well, in that case," Marly smiled. They were silent for a few seconds before Marly said, "You know, we don't have to be together in order for you to kiss me once more."

"Think so?"

"Pretty sure."

"I can deal with that."

* * *

_**Author's Note:** My friend and I had the very same conversation I had Marly and Sirius have about what our Animagus might be. Well, my brother thinks he'd be a penguin..but that was brought up. We have a whole list of crappy animals. We're awesome like that. Anyways, thanks so much for reading and please let me know what you think!_


	7. Everybody Needs Someone Sometime

_**Disclaimer: **This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Everybody Needs Someone Sometime" is by Jewel and I do not own it in any way._

**Desperado  
Chapter Six: Everybody Needs Someone Sometime**

_'Cause everybody needs someone sometime  
Everybody needs someone, can't you see?  
Everybody needs someone sometime_

"Great class, everyone!" Brigitte called over the shuffling of feet. "Very vell done!"

Marly pulled herself to her feet from where she had sat and observed the class. With her partner underground, she couldn't very well participate, but didn't want Brigitte to think that she and Remus had lost interest in their classes. However, by not being one of the dancing couples, it became obvious that Brigitte wasn't kidding when she said that Remus and Marly were the better of the students she had. While the other couples were obviously good dancers for being in the advanced class, they didn't have the same charisma and energy that Marly felt with Remus.

"Miss Marly," Brigitte stopped her before she could take off across the studio. "I vas glad to see you tonight. However, it is not the same vithout you dancing."

"Remus is out of town again," Marly replied apologetically. "He's been gone for about two months now, which is why I haven't been here."

"Vhen vill he be back?"

"Soon, I hope," Marly shrugged.

"Vell, vhen he returns, we must set up a time to go to that club I told you about," Brigitte reminded Marly.

"It's a date," Marly nodded, giving the woman a warm smile. "I'll see you next week, Brigitte."

The instructor gave Marly a happy nod before turning to one of the other couples, appraising their tango technique. Straightening her dark red sweater, Marly took off once more across the floor, nearly making it to the door before she was intercepted once again, this time by another one of the dancers. She recognized the dancer as Adam Pace, the partner of Caroline, who Marly had an inclining was interested in Remus.

"Hey, Marly," Adam greeted, leaning against the doorframe to prevent her from escaping. "Where are you off to so fast?"

"Actually, I have plans," Marly explained, raising an eyebrow and taking to duck under his arm. He shifted so that she couldn't. Deciding that she should probably just humour him, she asked, "Why do you ask?"

Adam cleared his throat once and pushed his hair back with his right hand. "Well, I was hoping I could entice you on a - "

"Adam, leave Marly alone," Caroline came up behind the two of them, and then gave Marly an apologetic smile. "Sorry about that."

"Caroline - " Adam complained, giving his partner an annoyed look, but was interrupted before he could continue.

"My brother has no tact," Caroline rolled her eyes, poking Adam hard in the side.

"Oh - you two are brother and sister?" Marly asked, her eyes wide in surprise. "Remus and I thought you were together."

"That's revolting," Adam scrunched up his nose.

Caroline shot him a look. "You know, I'm quite a catch."

"You're my sister."

"That doesn't mean I'm not attractive."

"It does for me."

"Honestly, Adam, would it kill you to compliment me once and a while?"

"Yes, Caroline, it would."

Marly cleared her throat loudly, as Adam was still blocking her path out of the studio. The siblings stopped bickering, realizing that she was still standing there.

"Actually, it's my birthday," Marly complained, sparing a look at her watch. "I was supposed to meet my friends five minutes ago at a pub maybe ten minutes from here."

"Oh, happy birthday!" Caroline said loudly, flashing her a smile.

"You know, Marly, I really love going to pubs," Adam raised his eyebrows.

"I repeat - you have no tact," Caroline whipped around toward her brother again. "Really, Adam, she didn't even invite - "

"The more the merrier," Marly smiled, hoping that it would get her to the pub sooner, seeing as the owl Lily had sent her earlier that day had nearly taken off her hand it was so urgent. "Just…don't mention that I know you two through dance class." At the questioning looks she received at that, she explained, "Remus doesn't want our friends to know he can dance."

"Ah," Caroline nodded understandingly. "Adam is the same way."

"Today we're at a concert," Adam shrugged.

"So," Caroline asked timidly as the three took off walking to the pub Sirius worked at. "Are you and Remus serious?"

"Meaning, what?" Marly raised an eyebrow.

"She wants to know if you're together because she has been eyeing Remus since the two of you started class," Adam explained, warranting a punch from Caroline.

"That's not entirely true," Caroline said breathlessly, her face flushed. "It's just - "

"We're not together," Marly interrupted, saving Caroline from further embarrassment. "We're just flat mates."

"Is that so," Caroline said, exchanging hopeful glances with her brother.

Before long, the three of them reached the pub and they were greeted with a loud uproar. Marly couldn't help but smile as she saw all of her friends and most of the Order members were there. However, she felt her heart sink a bit when she realized that Remus hadn't made it home in time for her birthday. She assured herself for the umpteenth time that day that Dumbledore would've told her if something had happened to him while he was underground, then pushed the feelings away.

"Happy birthday, Marly!" Lily exclaimed, rushing up to her and wrapping her arms around her. Upon seeing Caroline and Adam, Lily raised an eyebrow.

"These are my friends, Caroline and Adam," Marly introduced them quickly, and then gave Lily a significant look, trying to tell her that they were Muggles.

"Oh!" Lily comprehended, her eyes wide in shock and having just as much tact as Adam possessed earlier. "Oh - nice to meet you!"

As soon as Caroline and Adam disappeared into the crowd to order drinks, Lily turned sharply to Marly.

"Why are you hanging out with Muggles?"

"Have you turned Slytherin on me, Miss Muggle-born?" Marly asked, batting her eyelashes. "They're just some friends of mine."

"All right," Lily replied, not looking convinced. Then, taking another approach, asked, "Why are you so late? I was nearly positive my owl was urgent enough."

"You didn't even tell me why I had to be at the pub," Marly rolled her eyes. "I mean, it was obvious and all, but - "

"Just because I didn't leave you a reason didn't mean it wasn't important," Lily said impatiently, a hand on her hip. "Every time I owl you it's important. Hello - it's me."

"Merlin, Lily, I can't breathe!" Marly exclaimed, putting a hand on her heart. "Your ego is filling the room!"

"Oh, you're bloody hilarious, Marly," Lily rolled her eyes before Anna, Sheila, and Katherine butted in onto the conversation, presents in hand.

"Lily, leave the poor girl alone," Katherine waddled over, her hand on her belly, which was near ready to pop.

"How much longer, Kath?" Marly asked, setting the cards and gifts onto a nearby table and flashing some other friends a smile.

"One week," Katherine replied, looking at the bulge fondly. "Derrick and I couldn't be more excited."

"Please, Marly, don't get her started on that bloody baby," Sheila joked, edging away from their pregnant friend before she could do something rash. "She hasn't stopped talking about it all night."

"Oh, Sirius was looking for you," Anna spoke up suddenly, a grin splitting across her face. "I suggest for you to find him before he gets snatched up by someone else."

"I volunteer in the snatching," Sheila raised a hand.

"Excuse me, girls," Lily gave a sly smile, looking pointedly at Marly. "Someone has nearly three weeks left of a pact."

"Oh, please, Lily," Katherine rolled her eyes.

"You know, I actually think it's a good idea for them," Anna interrupted. "If he'll wait, they'll know they're perfect for each other."

"It's not like I'm looking to tie the knot or anything," Marly rolled her eyes, backing away from the group to find Sirius.

"I said the same thing about James," Lily said in a singsong voice as Marly walked away.

Marly searched the pub, only stopping once or twice when certain friends sidestepped her to wish her happy birthday or push a card into her hands. Finally, she caught Sirius's eye, who was wiping down the bar quickly.

"Hey," Marly greeted.

"Happy birthday," Sirius gave her a grin, and then reached under the bar to put a short glass in front of her. "Aged to perfection."

"Well, thank - "

"Marly, where did you go?"

Marly tried to ignore the sceptical look on Sirius's face as she turned to see Adam, who instantly leaned against the bar, much like he had been when he stopped Marly from leaving their dance studio.

"Er, I was with some friends," Marly explained quietly, turning back to Sirius and picking her brandy up. "Sirius, this is Adam. Adam, Sirius."

The two exchanged a curt nod, making Marly feel even more uncomfortable. After a few moments of silence, she cleared her throat.

"So, Sirius, when are you done with work?" Marly tried to start conversation, noticing the appraising look he was giving Adam.

"As soon as Penny gets here," Sirius replied quietly. "Actually, there she is right now."

Sirius turned and walked the length of the bar toward a pretty blonde who looked quite frazzled at the amount of business they had managed in the normally slow bar.

"Who is that?" Adam asked, sneering at Sirius's retreating self.

"Sirius Black," Marly shrugged. "We went to school together."

"Secondary school?"

Marly swallowed hard, trying to remember what her dad had said about Muggle schooling, then nodded. "Yeah, I suppose you could say that. We've known each other for quite some time, but got to know each other more in the past year."

"I see," Adam nodded, a contemptuous look on his face. "He doesn't seem right by me."

"Is that so," Marly asked, an obviously bored tone in her voice.

"He needs a haircut and he has too many tattoos," Adam continued, still looking at Sirius, who was pointing around the room and explaining things to his relief. "And - "

"Adam, I really don't care," Marly turned sharply, giving him a look.

"He isn't right for you."

"You don't know two things about me," Marly sighed, sitting back in her bar stool and taking another sip from her drink.

"Well, maybe I should get to know you better," Adam raised an eyebrow.

Marly looked at Sirius, who patted Penny once on the shoulder, then met Marly's eye. He jerked his head once as he stepped out from behind the bar, a bottle of beer in one hand. Marly gave him a smile before turning to Adam.

"No, that's quite all right," Marly said, pushing herself off of the barstool. "I'll see you next week at dance lessons."

"Marly, wait - "

Marly hurried across to where Sirius was waiting for her and followed him to a small table.

"He seems…nice," Sirius raised an eyebrow, popping the cap off of the bottle and smiling at Marly.

"You could say that," Marly rolled her eyes. "I'm a little confused as to when he thought I'd even begin to fathom feelings toward him."

"No kidding," Sirius sat back. "I think you'd probably go for someone a bit taller."

"Yeah?"

"With tattoos and an earring."

"Think so?"

"Maybe shaggy black hair and piercing blue eyes."

"Is there someone like that around?" Marly looked over her shoulder, scanning the room.

"I'll let you know," Sirius smirked.

"Marly!" Lily came up to them suddenly, a drink in her right hand. "This is for you."

"Did you make it?" Marly asked, her eyebrow rose.

"Of course I didn't," Lily sighed exasperatedly. "It's a happy birthday drink from me to you."

"Great," Marly sniffed the glass. "What is this?"

"Just drink it," Lily rolled her eyes, flipping her hair dramatically as she returned to where she had been standing with their other friends.

Marly pushed the drink in front of Sirius. "You're the bartender. What is this?"

Sirius leaned forward so that his nose was nearly touching the liquid. "Firewhiskey."

"What?"

"It's firewhiskey."

"She knows I don't like firewhiskey," Marly made a face as Sirius pushed the drink back toward her. "And why is she carrying it around with her?"

"Prongs likes it."

"Then why is he carrying it around with him?"

"She's watching you," Sirius said with a grin, glancing over at Lily.

Marly followed his gaze and noticed that her best friend was, indeed, looking at her. When their eyes met, Lily mimed drinking a glass and gave her a wide grin.

"Whatever," Marly sighed heavily, downing the firewhiskey in a gulp. She put on a grimace and shook herself once. "Terrible."

"Really?" Sirius asked, taking the glass and finishing the remaining bit for her. He mimicked her grimace. "Maybe that wasn't firewhiskey."

"Great, she poisoned us," Marly leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms.

"No, she couldn't have," Sirius shook his head, smirking at Marly. "It's too late for them to take back your dress and my tuxedo."

* * *

"Miss McKinnon, I think I can say that you're properly laggered up," Sirius helped Marly to her feet as the last of the birthday party left the bar.

"That is an outrageous accusation, Shiri – Siru – Shariush," Marly stammered, a confused look on her face. "I'll get it. Suiri – Sirius – there!"

"That's why I call him Padfoot," James spoke up, leaning against a barstool himself. "Much easier to say than Sirius when I'm minced."

"Sirius, can I trust you to get her home safely?" Lily asked, pulling on James's arm.

"If you can promise to do the same for Prongs, here," Sirius nodded at his best mate.

"It seems I have little choice," Lily let out a great sigh. "Come on, James."

"But, Lily, the party is just beginning!" James spun around once, tripping over his feet and falling back onto the bar.

"Actually, it's ending," Penny smiled from behind the bar. "I need to close or I won't be able to get laggered myself."

"Let's go, James," Lily put an arm around her fiancé's waist. She looked over her shoulder at Marly and Sirius and gave them a wink. "You two have a good night."

"As should you, Miss Evans," Sirius called after her as the door swung shut behind them.

"I'm really not terribly drunk," Marly turned to Sirius as they left the bar, bidding Penny goodbye over their shoulder.

"Really," Sirius replied, obviously not believing her.

"Really!" Marly insisted, her jaw dropping at his inane disbelief. "I just have a problem pronouncing your name. Which, by the way, isn't terribly surprising as it's quite the name."

"I happen to like my name," Sirius said, putting an arm around Marly's shoulders as she began to walk off into a diagonal line toward a storefront. "It's the only good thing my family gave me."

"I wasn't saying I don't like it," Marly replied, tightening her coat around her tighter. "It's a star name, right?"

"Brightest star in the sky," Sirius nodded.

"I didn't get an Outstanding on my Astronomy NEWT for nothing," Marly smiled and brought her eyes high into the clear night sky. "Can we see it right now?"

"You're looking too high," Sirius replied, pointing ahead of them at a bright star floating just about the distant horizon of short buildings.

"It is really bright, isn't it," Marly sighed quietly, looking at it. "I wish my name had a story behind it. Well, besides that it was my grandmother's name."

"Actually, Sirius was my grandfather's name," Sirius continued, coming to a stop in front of his motorbike. "As well as half of my family. We're all star names, really."

"Really?" Marly asked, her eyes wide. "That's wicked."

"I suppose," Sirius shrugged. "Well, except for my mum, but she's bloody mental, so she doesn't count. However, my dad is Orion, which isn't so much a star as a constellation, and then my brother is Regulus. Then there are my cousins, Andromeda, Bellatrix, and Narcissa, but that isn't a star name, either, so I guess she's mental as well – actually, that much is obvious. Put this on."

"I don't know if I can take all of these outrageous lies," Marly smirked, putting the helmet onto her head. "You can't go around saying all of your family has star names if they aren't all star names."

"Well, many apologies," Sirius flashed Marly a smile which made her weak in the knees. "Will you ever find it in your heart to forgive me?"

"No," Marly said seriously, climbing onto the bike.

"Then I think you're Apparating," Sirius shrugged, pulling his own helmet over his head. "Give me the helmet."

"I thought you didn't want me to splinch," Marly raised an eyebrow, not moving from her place on his bike.

"Well, if you'd go ahead and forgive me - "

"You're crazy."

"For you."

"And corny," Marly raised an eyebrow. "Fine, I forgive you."

"That's all I needed," Sirius gave her another smile, mounting his bike.

Once in front of Marly's flat, Sirius came to a stop. After a moment where the two enjoyed the warmth of their bodies being pressed against each other, Marly noticed that her flat was lit up.

"Either I'm being robbed or Remus is home," Marly jerked up, hurrying off the bike. "Oh, hell, I was going to invite you inside."

Sirius couldn't help but smile, not getting off of his bike. "It's all for the best. I have a meeting in the morning."

"A meeting?"

"You could call it that," Sirius nodded.

Marly paused for a moment, unsure if he was going to elaborate. When he didn't, she pulled her helmet off and gave it to him. She brought a hand behind her head and rubbed it uncomfortably.

"Well, thank you for a great birthday."

"I had to return the favour," Sirius nodded, smiling. "I'll owl you."

"All right," Marly replied as Sirius started his bike up once more. "Good night."

"Night," Sirius waved before taking off down the street.

Feeling a bit awkward inside – she wasn't sure if it was what she had drank that night or if it was the conversation she had just participated in – Marly adjusted her purse on her shoulder and walked toward the flat. Praying that she wasn't going to have to fight off some sort of intruder, she pushed the unlocked door of her flat open, revealing her long absent flat mate.

"You're home!" Marly said, feeling much more excited than she had moments ago with Sirius. She threw her purse onto the sofa and wrapped her arms around Remus, who was pouring himself a cup of tea wearing an open button down shirt and pyjama pants. "You look nice."

"I was halfway through changing when the tea kettle went off," Remus explained, spilling tea onto the counter. "Oh, hell."

Marly loosened her grip on Remus and waved her hand over the counter, cleaning the tea.

"Thanks," Remus replied, putting the kettle and cup down. "Now, come here. I'm sure that was the lousiest hug I've ever given."

Marly let out a laugh and let Remus envelop his arm around her. Marly took a deep breath and couldn't help but smile at how comfortable she felt in his arms.

"Oh, I've missed you," Marly admitted.

"I could tell – this place is a sty," Remus replied with a chuckle. "Honestly, all you'd have to do is snap your fingers and I bet everything would be clean."

"I figured you'd want something productive to do once you got home," Marly joked as they loosened their grips on each other. She took his hand and began to drag him toward the sitting room, but not before he could take hold of his cup of tea. "Now, tell me all about your little holiday."

Remus let out a derisive snort. "Holiday wouldn't exactly be the way to describe it, really."

"You didn't make any werewolf friends?" Marly asked, batting her eyelashes at him.

"No, Marly, I didn't," Remus replied as they both took a seat on their sofa. "I got nowhere, let me tell you that."

"Anything interesting happen?"

"I found out who bit me," Remus shrugged, a disgusted look on his face. "Fenrir Greyback."

"Oh."

"But, yes, I just got back not ten minutes before you showed up at the door," Remus crossed his legs. "I had to stop and report to Dumbledore, but that didn't take terribly long as nothing worthwhile was accomplished."

"I see," Marly replied, pulling her legs underneath her so she was kneeling on the couch.

"You've been drinking, haven't you," Remus smirked.

"How do you know?"

"Besides the fact I could smell it on you a mile away, you can't sit still," Remus pointed out. "Oh, and happy birthday."

"You're two hours late," Marly huffed and then winked at him to show she was kidding. "I hate that shirt on you. Why do you wear it so often?"

"To bother you," Remus shrugged, setting his cup of tea on the short table next to the couch.

"You do so many other things to reach that goal, though," Marly reached forward, tugging on the shirt. "Take it off."

"Why?"

"Because I said so."

"Fine," Remus rolled his eyes, giving her an annoyed look. He leaned forward and maneuvered so it was easier for her to take it off of him.

"Much better," Marly replied, throwing the shirt onto the floor and laying her head in his lap. "Oh, you'll never guess who I found out fancies…" Her voice trailed off as she stared at his chest. It was quite a bit more defined than she remembered.

"Fancies what?" Remus asked, giving Marly a confused look.

"Er…," Marly swallowed hard, then looked up into her best mate for life's face. She'd never noticed just how pretty his amber eyes were. They were an unusual colour – almost golden.

"You're not going to be sick all over me, are you?" Remus asked, a stricken look on his face. "Last time you did that it smelled so horrid I almost got sick."

"No," Marly shook her head slowly, her stomach filled with butterflies, as she stared at his face. His light brown curls fell limply around his face and he had a fair growth of facial hair from not being able to shave for a few weeks. Marly brought one of her hands to his cheek, rubbing her thumb lightly against his cheekbone.

"What – Marly - " Remus stammered, his eyes wide in confusion.

Before he could protest any more, Marly leaned up, letting their lips collide softly, allowing them to share their very first kiss. Not completely comprehending what he was doing, Remus allowed one of his hands to slide down Marly's side, feeling the soft cashmere fabric of her sweater, and began to kiss her back.

"Wait," Remus said suddenly, jerking back, his hand still planted on the strip of bare skin between the bottom hem of her sweater and the top of her jeans. "What are - "

"Stop talking," Marly said, their faces nearly touching as she softly trailed a finger across his lips. "Talking is unnecessary at the moment."

"But - "

In response, Marly pushed him back onto the sofa and moved so that she was straddling his left leg. She brought both of her hands up to his chin, cupping them softly before she lowered her face to his own, their lips brushing once again. At first Remus tensed, as though he was going to protest more, but rather, he brought one of his hands to her lower back and the other pushed her closer, deepening the kiss.

"I've been wanting this for ages," Remus said in a husky voice, his right hand easing underneath her sweater.

"I think I told you to stop talking," Marly replied quietly, finding his lips once more.

* * *

As Marly slowly woke up, she instantly felt her head pounding, making her regret drinking the night before. She rolled over once, confused as she ran into another body in her bed. Although her mind told her not to, she jerked her eyes open as she brought herself up to her elbows. As she came to recognize the bare-chested figure next to her, she felt her jaw drop.

_'Oh, hell.'_

* * *

_**Author's Note:** Uh-oh! How is this going to play out? I know! Ahahhaa.. Anyways, thanks for reading and please let me know what you think all right?_


	8. Sway

_**Disclaimer:** This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Sway" is by The Perishers and I do not own it in any way._

**  
Desperado  
Chapter Seven: Sway**

_I look at you and see a friend  
I hope that's what you want to be  
Are we back now where it all began?_

_'Oh, Merlin,'_ Marly thought for the umpteenth time in the half hour she had been awake. She paced the length of her sitting room in her bathrobe; both of her hands were balled up atop her head and her eyes wide in a mixture of confusion and desperation. _'How the _hell_ did that happen?'_

Marly's pot of tea suddenly whistled, making her jump and hurry into the kitchen. With a heavy sigh, she poured some of the tea into a cup. Standing over the sink, she watched as the steam circled from the top of the cup, feeling the warmth on her face. Furrowing her brow, she strained to remember what had happened the night before. _'Dance class…Sirius's pub…Remus was home.'_

She glanced around and Marly's eyes caught the sleeve of the button up she had forced him to take off while they were on the couch.

'_Oh.'_

But, remembering what had happened confused Marly more. She had never been attracted to Remus before. Sure, she knew that he was good-looking, but it made her queasy – even now – to think of him as anything more than her best friend.

Marly breathed another sigh and turned back into the kitchen, her feet sinking into the well-worn rug on the tile. She stared at the peeling wallpaper and made a note in her mind to talk to Remus about getting it replaced when someone cleared their throat behind her, making her jump and spill her tea down the front of her tan bathrobe.

"Hi," Remus said in a timid voice.

Marly turned to face him, running her hand over the wet spot and making it disappear. She took in his disheveled appearance. He had managed to find his pyjama pants, but there was a massive hickey on his collarbone. When Remus noticed what she was looking at, he brought his right hand up to cover it, making them both flush.

"Hi," Marly replied, backing into the counter.

Remus cleared his throat once again and took a step toward Marly, making her squirm. He hesitated before walking straight toward and reaching over her shoulder to open the cupboard door that held the teacups.

"Oh, sorry," Marly mumbled, sidestepping out of his way, uncomfortable to be nearly touching him.

Remus seemed to sense her awkwardness and hesitated before reaching to pick out his favourite cup. They were silent as he filled his cup with the rest of the tea in the kettle. Marly could never recall a moment in their friendship where neither of them knew what to say to each other. Then again, Marly also could never recall a moment in their friendship when they had broken the cardinal rule – don't sleep with your best friend.

Suddenly, the two opened their mouths to talk at the same time, and then chuckled sheepishly. After a moments pause, Marly took a deep breath.

"I guess we should talk." She tapped the side of her white cup with her fingernails.

"I guess so," Remus replied, scuffing his heel against the rug.

"Look, Remus, I - "

Before Marly could say another word, there were three sharp knocks on the door. With an apologetic sigh, she crossed the room with Remus behind her, retrieving his shirt and quickly putting it on to cover his bruise.

Marly didn't even bother to look through the peephole, thus causing Lily to fall through the door, as she had been leaning against the door herself.

"What if I was a Death Eater?" Lily asked with an incredulous look.

"I somehow doubt that a Death Eater would knock, Lily," Marly replied in an unamused voice, letting Lily come into the sitting room before closing the door behind her.

"How was your – Remus!" Lily exclaimed, noticing him hovering near the sofa. "Thank Merlin you're home. I don't know if I could endure any more fretting from Marly."

Remus forced a smile and allowed Lily to give him a tight hug.

"It's good to be home," Remus said, although lack of enthusiasm in his voice seemed to argue with that statement.

"Lily, is there a reason you're here?" Marly asked, looking a bit irritated.

With a bit of a hurt expression on her face, Lily replied, "We're supposed to go to that flower shop, remember? You promised me a few days ago you'd come with. You didn't forget, did you?"

"No, Lily, I'm planning on wearing my bathrobe in public," Marly replied, then feeling a bit guilty for being so short with her. "Let me go change."

Marly hurried to disappear in her room, but there was still a lingering air of what had happened in there only a few hours earlier. She swallowed hard, fighting desperately to put that out of her mind. As she opened her dresser and pulled out her underclothes, she forced her mind to think about flowers. _'What flowers would look best with our dresses?'_

As soon as she had put her bra and underwear on and pulled a t-shirt on over her head, she mused about whether or not red roses would be _too_ Christmas, as their bridesmaid dresses were emerald green. Suddenly, there was a pop and Remus appeared behind her.

Marly met his eyes and gave him a look that clearly said that this was not the time. Rather than leave her be, he crossed his arms and looked at her impatiently.

"What?" Marly asked, walking past him and picking up long skirt off the floor that she'd only worn once since she last washed it.

"Are we going to talk about this?" Remus asked, watching as she pulled the skirt up over her hips.

Marly met his eyes as she looked at her reflection in her mirror, making sure that the shirt and skirt matched well. "Now probably isn't the best time."

"Are you going to pretend it didn't happen?"

"Well, I obviously can't with you breathing down my neck, can I?"

"Would you rather I didn't?"

"Yes, Remus, I would," Marly snapped, hurrying across the room and wrapping a white scarf around her hair. "At least for the time being, please."

"You want me to just sit here all day as though we didn't shag?" Remus asked, narrowing his eyes at her.

"Basically," Marly replied shortly. "Look, Lily is out there right now. I need to go and make sure she doesn't pick carnations. Can this wait until I get back?"

"I don't have much choice, do I?"

"No, you don't," Marly replied, slipping into a pair of flats and grabbing her cloak swiftly before exiting the room.

Once she was in the sitting room, she looked at Lily, who seemed to have not heard any of the conversation, which made Marly feel at least a bit relieved.

"Let's go," Marly said, whipping her cloak around her and nearly taking out one of the plants in the corner.

The walk to the flower shop, which was only a few blocks from Marly's flat, consisted mainly of Lily babbling about the kinds of flowers she was thinking would accent the different dresses. Marly nodded and made approving or disapproving noises based on the subject matter. However, her mind was still back in her flat, trying to wrap itself around the fact that she had sex with Remus – Remus Lupin!

Marly furrowed her brow, trying to understand why she had done it. She couldn't even pinpoint a time in her twenty-one years of life that she wanted to end up in bed with him. Yes, she had definitely enjoyed it, but she was nearly involved with –

_'Oh, hell… Sirius.'_

Marly groaned inwardly, her heart sinking to her feet. They were far from exclusive, as they hadn't even kissed since his birthday, but it was obvious to just about every one of their friends that once the end of November came about, they were going to be.

And then, light a jolt of lightening, she realised that Remus didn't even know about the growing relationship between her and Sirius. They had barely even brought each other up to speed about the last couple of months when things spiraled out of control.

Which brought Marly back to her initial thought. Why had she suddenly been so attracted to him? It wasn't as though she hadn't come home drunker than that night – not the mention that most of the time she drank, Remus was with her, in the exact same state. Why hadn't they –

"Marly!"

Marly jumped and blinked a few times, turning to look at Lily, who was giving her an annoyed look. She noticed that she had almost walked straight past the flower shop.

"What?"

"Are you listening to me?"

"Maybe?" Marly asked, biting her lip. "Sorry."

"Whatever," Lily sighed, leading Marly into the shop.

_'Flowers, Marly,'_ she thought to herself sternly. _'Just think flowers.'_

As Lily began to slowly meander around the shop, she gave Marly a questioning look. She reached forward and gingerly touched the petals of a lily, which was part of a rather beautiful bouquet.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Marly lied without hesitation.

"Did you have a good night last night?"

_'Daffodils, sunflowers, roses.'_ Marly cleared her throat. "Sort of."

"Meaning?"

_'Orchids, pansies, hibiscus.'_ She spared Lily a look. "Just sort of."

"Did you shag Sirius?"

_'Gladiolas, petun - '_ Marly felt her jaw drop. "What?"

"You heard me," Lily smirked. "And judging by your guilty manner, I'd say I'm correct in my assumptions."

"I can guarantee you that I did not shag Sirius last night," Marly said point blank. "What do you think about these?"

"You're acting far too guilty to have not shagged anyone," Lily ignored the flowers, a hand planted on her jutted out hip. "It had to have been Sirius."

"I think that if you put some greens with these they'd be lovely."

"Who else could it have been?" Lily mused pursing her lips in thought. "If Sirius just took you home and you didn't meet anyone along the way - "

"Or maybe some of these," Marly continued, her speech becoming more rapid and high-pitched.

"Then – Merlin, no!"

"Lily, please, before you jump to any conclusions - "

"Remus?"

" – I was quite drunk and - "

"You shagged Remus?"

" – I really don't remember much - "

"The potion was meant for you and Sirius!"

" – and I didn't, wait, what potion?" Marly asked, a confused look on her face.

"Did I say potion?" Lily asked, flushing. "I meant, err, watermelon."

"What potion, Lily?" Marly demanded, crossing her arms angrily.

"Well, look," Lily's eyes darted around the shop, looking for the shopkeeper in desperation. "It's just, well, all of us thought that it was daft that you were actually following through with that pact. I mean, we weren't _really_ making you go through with it and it's quite painful watching you - "

"Get to the point," Marly's eyes narrowed.

"I mixed a Passion Potion with firewhiskey," Lily said quickly, her face contorted slightly, as though expecting Marly to slap her.

"You did _what_?"

Lily swallowed hard, looking guilty. "If all would have gone to plan you wouldn't be mad."

"However, all did not 'go to plan,'" Marly replied, shaking her head in disbelief. "Lily, I can't believe you!"

"It wasn't just my idea," Lily protested. "Both James and Anna agreed that you both would either not mind or not notice."

"Lily, I slept with my best mate last night," Marly stated. "Have you ever done that before?"

"That would require me sleeping with you," Lily answered. "So, I'd have to say no."

"This isn't good," Marly sighed. "At least I know that it wasn't because I have some hidden desire for Remus, though."

"Well, he was sober."

"Right…" Marly cocked an eyebrow.

"Did he try to stop you?" Lily continued.

Marly racked her brain, trying to recall exactly what had happened. "I don't think so."

"Then again, why would he?"

"What are you talking about?" Marly asked, looking confused.

Lily gave Marly a blank look, and then blinked a few times as though waiting for Marly to start laughing. "You're serious?"

"What?"

"You honestly haven't picked up on the fact that Remus has been smitten with you since you two were teenagers?" Lily explained, still looking at Marly in disbelief.

Marly let out a laugh. "Yeah, all right, Lily."

"Marly, he does your laundry!" Lily insisted. "What kind of man does that?"

"You're mental," Marly shook her head, but looked as though she was actually considering what Lily was saying. "Now, come on, let's find some bloody flowers."

"Are you upset with me?"

"Yes," Marly replied simply. "However, I'm used to you going to great lengths trying to control my life. It's nothing new."

"What are you - "

"Can I help you?" the shopkeeper interrupted, smiling pleasantly at the two and obviously not picking up on the tension.

* * *

Marly slowly walked up to her flat, not wanting to go in and explain the situation. If what Lily said was true, then the situation was quite a bit more troublesome than as Marly first suspected. With a discontent sigh, she reached the door and pushed it open, preparing herself for a very agitated Remus. 

However, the scene was much different than as Marly anticipated. In fact, rather than angrily pacing around the flat as Remus normally did when he was upset, he had set up his Muggle record player in the sitting room so that it was exuding a quick foxtrot. Remus, meanwhile, was dancing around the sitting room with a normal broom in front of him. Marly watched him in wonder until the song came to an end. He turned, suddenly, sensing her presence as the record continued on to play "Melody of Love" by Frank Sinatra.

With a would-be roguish smile had it come from anyone other than Remus, he threw the broom onto the couch and invited Marly to come toward him.

"Waltz with me, darling," he drawled in a bad American accent, extending a hand.

"You're in a good mood," Marly ventured, taking his hand and letting him pull her close.

Remus lowered one of his hands to her waist as they fell into the simple dance steps. "I've been dancing."

"I noticed."

They fell silent as they circled the room, the tension rising once more as they realized how close they were to each other. Marly could tell that Remus was trying to catch her eye, but she was careful to keep her gaze on his shoulder.

"Want to talk now?" Remus asked, his fingers shifting around hers.

"Lily gave me a Passion Potion," Marly said quickly, still looking at his shoulder. "I didn't know until we were at the flower shop."

Remus was silent for a moment, and then asked quietly, "Why would she give you that?"

Marly swallowed hard and explained, "Lily has been playing matchmaker these past few months with me and…someone else. She thought that if she slipped us the potion we'd, well, I think you know what happened."

They fell silent once again, their steps not even lining up with the beats in the music. Marly felt her face flush a bit and her eyes lowered to the middle of his chest.

"And it was all the potion," Remus accused, his voice steady.

"Yes," Marly replied, her voice barely audible.

"I see."

Marly hesitated before saying, "I'm really sorry, Remus."

"Who is Lily trying to set you up with?"

"What?" Marly asked, blinking hard and meeting his eyes for the first time since she entered the apartment. "Why do you want to know?"

"I'm just curious."

Marly swallowed hard. "Sirius."

Remus tore his eyes away from Marly's and stared over her shoulder.

"I see."

Marly fought back a grimace. Whenever Remus said, "I see," it meant that there was much more he'd like to say, but he was fighting back saying it and he'd already said it twice in this conversation.

"I'm really sorry, Remus," Marly said again.

"Is it working?" Remus asked suddenly, their dancing slowing more.

"What?"

"Lily's efforts?"

Marly let out a deep breath. "Yes."

The song came to an end and they broke apart, but were still standing only inches away. For a split second, there was a hurt expression on Remus's face, but he quickly masked over it.

"I see."

"Look, Remus, you're my best mate and I love you," Marly said quickly, trying to fix everything as quickly as she could. "But that's the only way I'll ever love you – as my best mate."

"Of course," Remus shrugged, backing up slightly and turning his record player off. "I feel the same way."

"You do?" Marly asked hopefully.

Remus nodded and smiled. "Of course."

"Okay, good," Marly breathed a sigh of relief. "What are your plans for today?"

"I'm actually about to go out and grovel for my job at Flourish and Blotts," Remus said, reaching over to where his cloak was resting on the edge of the sofa. "I was waiting for you to get back."

"All right," Marly nodded, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room. "Good luck, then."

"Thanks," Remus nodded, then disappeared through the front door.

_'Great,'_ Marly sighed to herself, then retired into her room.

Looking around, she saw a mixture of her quick flight from the flat that morning and the efforts of ridding each other of their clothing the night before scattered around the floor. She shrugged her cloak off and draped it over one of her arms. As she was looking around, deciding if she wanted to clean or not, something fell out of one of the pockets and landed softly on her foot.

Surprised, Marly took a step back and saw a small object wrapped in brown paper. She bent over to inspect it and couldn't remember seeing it before. Dropping her cloak to the floor, she sat on the edge of her bed, ripping the paper open. Inside the paper was a small square mirror that was chipped along the right hand side. Marly stared at her reflection in confusion, and then turned it over to see a piece of parchment Spellotaped to the back.

"_Marly,_

_"I nicked this back from James last time I was at his house. We used these in school to talk to each other. This is much easier than Floo or owls if you need to get hold of me. Just say my name, all right?_

"_Yours, Sirius"_

Marly raised an eyebrow at the mirror and couldn't decide if she wanted to actually see if it worked. Sirius must have slipped it into her cloak the night before when they were walking to his motorbike. She couldn't help but feel butterflies rise in her stomach thinking about him, but pushed them away.

"Sirius Black," Marly said quietly, not really knowing what to expect.

Nothing happened for a few moments. With a sigh, Marly resigned that nothing was going to happen other than her looking at her reflection, and began to reach over to put the mirror on her bedside table.

"Marly?"

Marly grabbed the mirror once more, her eyes wide that it had actually worked. Rather than her own reflection, she saw Sirius, almost as though she was talking to a photo of him.

"Hi," Marly replied, her eyes still wide in amazement.

Sirius chuckled at how impressed she was. "You called?"

"Err, yeah," Marly nodded, remembering why she had wanted to talk to him in the first place. "Think you could Apparate or Floo over? I need to talk to you about something."

"Sure," Sirius nodded, and then disappeared from the mirror.

Before Marly could even look up from her own mirror, the door to her bedroom opened and Sirius walked through. Marly blinked blankly at him for a moment.

"Take your time, why don't you."

"Sorry, I was held up," Sirius retorted with a wink. "What's up?"

Completely sick of having to go over the story, Marly sighed heavily before launching into it quickly. "Basically, Lily gave us a Passion Potion last night. We were supposed to shag. You left and the only person for the effects to work out with was Remus."

Sirius shut the door behind him, looking confused. Suddenly, a look of realization washed over his face.

"Ah, I see."

"I know we're not _really_ together or anything, but I thought I should tell you," Marly continued to explain quickly, moving over so he could sit next to her. "It didn't mean anything and I really wish it hadn't happened and all, so I'm hoping you aren't terribly upset and - "

"First of all," Sirius interrupted, placing a hand over Marly's hand, "I'm not upset with you. I had someone use a Passion Potion on me in the seventh year and I was basically at her mercy. You couldn't help it. Second of all, I'm hoping that Lily has a nice limp about now after doing that."

"Oh, she won't be walking for weeks," Marly smirked after pulling his hand off of her mouth.

"Third," Sirius continued, smiling slyly, "was it any good?"

"Merlin, Sirius, I can't believe you just asked me that," Marly replied, her face scrunched up in disgust. "Honestly, that's terrible."

"Well, I figure eventually we're going to find ourselves in a passionate clutch – with or without the aid of a potion," he replied, edging closer to Marly.

"And you need to know how good Remus was in bed in order for that to happen?" Marly asked, not able to keep herself from leaning toward Sirius. "Is there something you should tell me, Mr. Black?"

Sirius chuckled. "I need to know if I have a little competition."

"No, believe me," Marly replied, their lips meeting. "You're pretty safe."

* * *

_**Author's Note:** If you flamed the last chapter, please forgive me for laughing at you. I'm pretty sure that I am the only one that knows the plot, therefore I am the only one who can feel as though the story is ruined. I'm the author. So, if you're going to judge my story before reading the whole thing...I feel sad for you._

_Anyways, obviously the drama isn't going to stop yet. (-: You know how these things go. Thanks for reading and please let me know what you thought!_


	9. What It Is To Burn

_**Disclaimer: **This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "What It Is To Burn" is by Finch and I do not, in any way, own it._

**  
Desperado  
Chapter Eight: What It Is To Burn**

_So tell me  
What's the price to pay for glory?_

"Bloody hell, Rem," Marly complained, throwing an annoyed expression at Remus as she gingerly massaged her foot. "Is there a reason you had to step on my foot every other beat?"

"I was only doing it in retaliation as you couldn't keep the steps straight," Remus shot back, his arms crossed in a dignified manner, although the whole look was wasted on the fact he had Marly's purse slung over his shoulder.

"Well, if you hadn't stepped on my foot so many times, I wouldn't have gotten confused," Marly rolled her eyes, slipping into her heels.

"Oh yeah? Maybe if - "

"Vhat is this?" Brigitte interrupted Remus, who instantly pursed his lips to stop himself from saying anything he might regret. "Do I detect a lovers' quarrel?"

Instantly, Remus's face turned beet red, which made Marly more annoyed than Brigitte's remark. They were used to getting such statements directed toward them, but ever since the incident a few weeks prior, they couldn't hear one without Remus morphing into a lobster.

"You know we aren't lovers, Brigitte," Marly replied in a playful voice.

"Oh, yes, of course," Brigitte nodded, a smile on her face. "Nonetheless, I that is not vhy I came over here." She paused, as though waiting for them to jump up and own excitedly. When they didn't, she continued, "Do you remember vhen you promised me you vould come to that club I told you about?"

Remus and Marly exchanged a look. They had rather hoped she'd forgotten the incident, especially with Lily and James's wedding coming up on top of their jobs and Order business. However, Remus gave Brigitte a nod so she knew that they did recall.

"Good, vell, how is this veekend for you two?"

"Oh, that's no good for me," Remus spoke up, going temporarily green in the face, knowing that he wouldn't be up to it as there was a full moon the upcoming Friday night. "I'll be, err, out of town on business."

"Vell, vhat about next Thursday after class, then?" Brigitte tried again, looking hopeful. "Vill you be back by then?"

Remus and Marly glanced at each other once again, obviously unable to get out of this any time soon.

Marly cleared her throat and said, "That's a lovely time for me, Brigitte. How about you, Remus? Anything going on?"

"It looks as though I'll be free," Remus nodded, making the instructor beam.

"Wunderbar!" Brigitte exclaimed, causing some of the other couples, who were filing out of the studio, to give them a questioning look. "I vill see you then!"

Marly and Remus joined the queue that was leaving the classroom, deciding not to mention how horrible the class had gone for the two of them anymore. Once onto the street, Remus started down the street as they normally did, but Marly stopped him.

"Aren't we going for dinner?" Remus asked, confused.

"I can't tonight," Marly replied, pulling her purse off Remus's shoulder and slinging it over her own.

"What?" Remus asked, looking shocked. "Why?"

"It's a _secret_," Marly replied, giving him a very pointed look.

Remus continued to look confused, but then his face flooded with recognition. "Oh – all right."

"I'm sorry," Marly apologized right away, biting her look. "I know it's tradition and all, but you know how last minute we can find out about these things."

"No, it's all right," Remus nodded. Then, not bothering to mask a contemptuous look, added, "Tell _Sirius_ I say hello."

Marly's face grew tight as an exasperated noise escaped from her throat. "You know what, Remus, that's it." She looked over her shoulder and called out, "Hey, Caroline, what time is it?"

"Quarter to nine!" Caroline called back with a jovial wave at the both of them, Adam trying to catch Marly's eye from next to her.

"I have fifteen minutes and can Apparate," Marly commented after waving back at Caroline. "We're going to settle this now."

"Settle what?" Remus asked, though his face was obviously recognizing just what "what" was.

Seizing Remus from the upper arm of his pale green shirt, Marly pulled him into an alley – not after making sure it was free of axe murderers and pickpockets. She fought back the urge to push him up against the wall like people always did in the Muggle movies her dad would make her watch, but settled for a very annoyed expression and crossing her arms.

"Is there a _problem_?" Remus asked, pursing his lips together in true McGonagall fashion.

"In the name of Merlin, Remus, yes, there is a big problem!" Marly replied shrewdly, staring him down. "I don't appreciate you making me feel like some sort of vixen whenever I pursue a new relationship."

"Well, if you weren't pursuing new bloody relationships every time I turn around - "

"Is that really what this is about?" Marly asked in disbelief. "I haven't given a bloke a second glance for nearly six months on top of the fact Sirius and I aren't actually together - "

"Yet you're _pursuing_ a relationship?" Remus asked pointedly. "Do you even _know_ anything about Sirius?"

Marly blinked a few times, not wanting to have this conversation. She had an inclining feeling as to where it was going to end up and she did _not_ want to go there.

When she didn't respond, Remus saw fit to fill the silence. "Sirius isn't any good for you. You're going to end up hurt - again - and I'm going to have to pick you up - again - and feel my heart break - again - as I watch you try to get past him."

"If he's so horrible, why is he one of your best mates?" Marly asked, narrowing her eyes.

"My friendship with Sirius goes a lot deeper than how he treats girls," Remus said simply. "But don't you understand? You're doing it again! You're falling for a bloke that would abandon you at any given moment. He's done it before, Marly - how come you're so convinced you're different?" Marly started to defend herself, but Remus interrupted her. "Don't even say anything about Lily trying to set you up. Unless I'm mistaken, I'm pretty sure she was the one who set you up with Gerald."

Marly breathed deeply, taking a moment to relinquish her sanity. She didn't know when or how it happened, but it seemed that her usually level-headed, fun to be with, always understanding best friend had turned into just another bloke.

"Please, be square with me," Marly pleaded, taking a step toward Remus, who took a step backward on instinct. "Are you jealous?"

"What?" Remus asked, his eyes wide in shock. Then, far too quickly, he exclaimed, "No!"

Marly bit her lip as her heart fell to her feet. It dawned on her that she must have broken cardinal rule number two of best friendship: don't fall for one of your best friend's other best mates - especially when your best friend has hidden feelings for you. With a sigh, Marly pressed her fingertips against her temples. She didn't need this sort of drama right before she went on a mission that had great potential to turn violent. However, as Marly gazed across the alley at the man who she had grown up with, confided in, learned to trust more than anyone in the world, she felt as though after twenty-one years of life, she found out that the sky that she had always seen as a brilliant blue is, in fact, rather green.

"Remus," Marly started, extending a hand to touch his arm, but he jerked out of the way before she could. She slowly brought her hand back to her body, placing her fist on her chest. "Please don't - "

"Don't you have to meet Sirius?" Remus asked rather stiffly, as though he was working hard to keep the emotion he was really feeling out of his voice.

Marly clamped her jaw tight, keeping herself quiet with a seemingly infinite amount of willpower. She wanted more than anything to hex the living daylights out of him, but for some reason she didn't think that would be wise. He may be turning into a prat of a best mate, but he was still her best mate.

"Marly!" Remus scolded suddenly, a look of fright in his eye, bringing Marly back to earth.

"What?"

The answer was nearly instantaneous as the large dumpster next to Remus fell back to the ground with a loud crash. Marly's eyes widened as the top came apart from its rusty hinge and clattered to the ground. There was a shout from one of the apartments above from where they were standing.

"Let's go," Marly advised and Remus didn't even try to argue.

The two hurried down the block, not wanting an angry proprietor to come down and discover two well-dressed twenty-somethings messing with his property. They came to a stop at another alley. Marly almost considered taking him in there to sort their problems out, but she knew that she wouldn't have the time.

With a sigh, she asked, "Can we finish this later?"

Remus's mouth twitched in annoyance, but he nodded. "It's fine."

"Any other circumstances - "

"I said it's fine, Marly."

Marly hesitated, desperately wanting to spare a glance at his watch, but knowing that Remus wouldn't appreciate it at all. Finally, she nodded in agreement. As he began to retreat into the shadows of the alley to Apparate, Marly took a few steps toward him, her heart torn.

"Remus, wait," Marly said breathlessly, knowing that Sirius was going to have her hide if she was too late. "I don't k now what's going to happen tonight and, you know, if things don't go as well as Sirius and I hope, I just want you - "

Remus held up a finger to stop her from talking. Any passer-by would have taken the conversation in a much different context than it was intended, they both knew, but it didn't matter what a passer-by would think.

"You'll be fine," Remus insisted earnestly, wanting to ease her mind despite how upset he was with her. "Padfoot won't let anything happen to you."

Marly swallowed hard, knowing that Sirius wouldn't intentionally let anything happen, but she was still worried. She couldn't help but wonder if Dumbledore may have been a bit overambitious when it came to her first field mission.

Not knowing what to say, Marly settled with a jerk of the head that was meant to be a nod and, "Okay."

"But, honestly," Remus looked down at his watch, biting his lip, obviously having an internal battle over whether or not he wanted there to be tension between the two of them when there was the potential for one of them to not come home. "You should be going. Despite his blatant disregard for it, Padfoot has a thing with punctuality."

Marly managed a small smile, which seemed to make Remus make up his mind. He closed the gap between the two of them and wrapped her in a hug. With a sigh, Marly realized that Remus's hugs could probably cure someone of a Dementor's Kiss, they were so heart-warming and intimate.

However, the good feelings were short lived when he pushed her away. Their eyes met, Remus's more serious than they had been at his mum's funeral when they were in Hogwarts.

"You'll be fine, all right?" Remus assured her once again with great earnest, but Marly couldn't tell if it was for her sake or his own.

"All right," Marly nodded once, still looking uncertain.

"I'll see you when you get back," Remus nodded to her before retreating into the shadows again.

Marly gave him a feeble wave before walking away. She could hardly hear the pop of him Apparating as she rushed down the sidewalk. She was glad that the streets were nearly empty, therefore didn't have to apologize to too many people for nearly trampling them. She knew that she should probably Apparate, but she had far too much on her mind and didn't want a splinching accident to ruin such an already stellar evening. Sure, she had been able to Apparate since she was thirteen, but that didn't mean she wasn't human.

As Marly walked, she crossed her arms, unable to feel as though she was stringing Remus along. While she had told him that her feelings for him were purely platonic - there was a reason they made that pact back in the fourth year, after all - she knew that the look in his eye when she caught him looking at her from across the flat wasn't just platonic. However, she couldn't help but think that it was a bit unfair that he was putting her in such a position. They were _best mates_ for Merlin's sake! While Marly didn't want to make Remus upset, she knew that the only way he would be truly happy is if she managed to find feelings for him that just didn't exist within her.

Waiting with a small group of people for the streetlight to change colours, Marly thought back to something Anna had told her ages ago while they were still in Hogwarts. While they weren't particularly close, they still regarded their bond as sisters as something sacred, thus kept each other posted on the juicy gossip in their lives. This particular time, Marly was a bit down because Benjy Fenwick, who had been a Hufflepuff seventh year then, hadn't reacted to her hints at asking her to a Hogsmeade weekend. Thinking back now it was quite laughable, as they had become fairly good friends through the Order. However, Anna, being full of great ideas, had thought that the best idea was for Marly to see if Remus wanted to go with her.

"What?" Marly had asked, scrunching up her nose in mock distaste. "Don't make me retch."

"Oh, come on," Anna rolled her eyes, looking quite annoyed as they came to a stop under a significantly large beech tree as they strolled around the lake. "He's basically a readymade date."

"And that's _just_ what I'm looking for," Marly replied, forcing the look off her face. "He's my best mate, Anna."

"Look, Marly, I know you hate it when I give you advice since I'm only fourteen and you're sixteen, therefore _so_ much wiser and smarter than me - "

"Who here was sorted into Ravenclaw? Oh, yes, I believe that would be me."

" - _however_, that has never stopped me before," Anna ignored her. "A girl and a bloke can never be best friends. It's just impossible."

Marly let out a long sigh, obviously not wanting to hear what her sister had to say. "And why might that be?"

"At one point or another, they are going to end up wanting each other in a way that definitely crosses the line between best mates," Anna explained seriously, either pretending Marly was interested or not noticing her waning interest. "More often than not, it'll be at the wrong time - when one or both of them has a significant other. While there's a slim chance that it'll be right…" Anna only shook her head in disbelief. "It's too bloody complicated."

"Well, you're wrong, Anna," Marly had shook her head defiantly, refusing to agree with her sister. "Remus and I are different."

_'Perhaps we aren't as different as I'd originally thought,'_ Marly though wryly, running her fingers down the brick of the storefronts as she neared her final destination. As she thought back over their fifteen year long friendship, her mind raced through the things that had kept them together. They both loved to learn, yearned to be accepted, and always had something snide to say to one another. However, if she was down she could always count on him for a good piece of advice, kind words, but always the truth, as he refused to sugar-coat. Then there were his to-die-for hugs, which even Lily agreed were heaven sent, his smile, and how easy it was for them to laugh together. Finally, Marly realized that she _had_ fallen in love with something - their friendship.

All the while, something Remus had said stuck out in her mind. Yes, Marly had fallen for quite a few blokes who fit Sirius's reputation, but she felt something so different about him. She didn't know why, but she trusted him in a way she hadn't with the other men. However, Remus was right - how did she know she was different? She wasn't any different for any of the other girls, was she?

Marly exhaled deeply as she reached the pub. She didn't even bother to look through the windows to see if Sirius was impatiently waiting for her. Rather, she tried to brush off any thoughts of Remus, as she had quite a night ahead of her.

"Just in time!" Marly was greeted as she pushed the door open. "Well, you're late, but Penny was running late and - what's wrong?"

"Why do you have to be so bloody thoughtful?" Marly managed as Sirius steered her out of the pub and back onto the street.

"Well, I'm sorry," Sirius smirked, amused by her moodiness as they started in the opposite direction Marly came in. "I'll be more careful to be a git next time."

"Good," Marly huffed.

"Want to talk about it?"

"No."

"Is there a reason you're wearing a dress on a mission?"

_'Oh, hell.'_ Marly looked down at her white dress and realized that she had completely forgotten to change. "I have my robes in my purse. I shrunk them."

"Where were you that required such a dress code?"

"I had dinner with Remus," Marly shrugged.

"So, Moony has something to do with the lovely mood you've found yourself in?" Sirius asked, raising an eyebrow. "Should I have a word with him?"

"Somehow I don't think that'd be a good idea," Marly said darkly. "Look, just," she stopped in front of an alley, not loving how often she had to use one this night, "could you guard the entrance so I can change real quickly?"

"Couldn't you just clap your hands once or something?"

"Sirius, be..." She gave him a thoughtful look.

"Yes, I've heard the joke before - more than once."

Marly couldn't help but smirk. "Guard the entrance without complaining and I won't mention it again."

"Fine, fine," Sirius gave her a coy grin as she hurried into the shadows. "Anyways, what's Moony gone and done to leave you so delightfully chuffed?"

Marly couldn't help but roll her eyes as she glanced back at Sirius, who was standing with his back to her, his arms crossed like a body guard or bouncer might. His robes were a bit tight fitting, hugging at his muscles. Marly thought for a moment how she wouldn't mind ditching this mission _and_ his robes, but shook herself mentally before she was too carried away.

"We had a bit of a row."

"Oh," Sirius said, obviously contemplating exactly what to say next. "About me?"

"Naturally," Marly sighed, looking up warily as she undressed, hoping that there weren't any peeping Toms in the windows above.

"I figured this would happen," Sirius admitted. "He's been quite frosty toward me lately."

"You know," Marly swallowed hard, fastening her robes in a frenzy, "I don't want to get between your friendship. You two have been best mates - "

"For not nearly as long as you two have," Sirius interrupted her. "I've been thinking the same thing."

Marly swallowed as she quickly shrunk her dress and purse so that they were both able to fit in the pocket of her robes without being too much of a nuisance. Stowing her wand in her front pocket, she began to walk back toward Sirius.

"Now may not be the time for this," she gave him a wane look, not at all enjoying that she was leaving _two_ rather important conversations unfinished.

Sirius nodded in agreement. However, as their eyes met, Marly couldn't help but think she saw a flash of the exact same desire she had experienced only moments before.

_'Since when did my life become so damn bloody dramatic?'_

* * *

"There he is," Sirius whispered to Marly in a strange language that sounded like a mixture between Elvish and Greek as they nonchalantly crossed a road. 

"Where?" Marly asked in the same language, still in awe of the spell that Sirius had placed on them both. While she didn't speak a word of the language, she was able to understand everything Sirius said and was fluent. She was disappointed to have heard that it would wear off in about eight hours or so.

"The git."

"Thanks, Sirius."

"Walking past the Apothecary," Sirius said out of the side of his mouth as he turned away from Regulus. While they were both quite out of his line of vision, they didn't want to make their presence any more obvious than need be.

Marly glanced over her shoulder, squinting through the darkness. After nearly five hours of wandering London, they had eventually gotten an updated minute owl from Dumbledore telling them that Regulus had been spotted at the Leaky Cauldron. While she didn't want to admit it, the whole mission seemed a bit dodgy to her - as though they didn't have much direction. However, Sirius had told her that Regulus seemed to have noticed that he had been tailed recently, but part of it was his own fault.

"It was that 'mission,' I told you about," Sirius said guiltily. "I went to my parents' home and tried to talk some sense in them." His face turned angry, but he seemed to be trying to control his emotions. "It was quite a mistake."

Now, though, as Marly took in the appearance of Sirius's younger brother, she couldn't help but let out a bit of a gasp.

"He's nearly identical to you." She couldn't help but smirk, though, at this remark seeing as they were both disguised as an elderly couple - something Marly had been able to contribute with a good batch of charms.

"Unfortunate for me, don't you think?" Sirius replied darkly. "He has brown eyes, though - it's the only main difference. Well, besides our personalities, obviously."

"I see," Marly nodded, grasping onto Sirius's arm as though she needed the help to walk across the road. She had been glad to see that her charms had worked perfectly. They only changed their appearance, therefore leaving their reflexes and whatnot as sharp as a bunch of twenty-year-olds.

"Let's see where he's going," Sirius said quietly as they trailed behind Regulus with a city block or so between them.

At first, it seemed as though Regulus was only out on a late night walk, but, before long, he gave a glance over his shoulder. Sirius and Marly pretended to be deep in conversation about Quidditch scores, but Regulus was unable to understand word they were saying. After deciding that they were no threat and not thinking twice about the fact that an elderly couple was out far past midnight in the middle of Diagon Alley, he shirked off down another road.

Once he was out of sight, Sirius and Marly hurried into the shadows, where Marly quickly ran her hands over Sirius's face, changing him from an old man to a young man, curly blonde hair falling into his face. As she did the same to herself, Sirius checked himself out in the reflection of a window and gave her a lopsided grin.

"Let's go," Marly said seriously, glancing down at her fiery red hair that went far past her elbows.

Sirius nodded and, with their newly transformed bodies, hurried down the road that Regulus had disappeared within. Marly blinked a few times, realizing that they were heading toward Knockturn Alley. Giving Sirius a furtive glance, she noticed that he was beginning to think the same thing. This couldn't be good.

As they walked hand-in-hand down Knockturn Alley, Marly couldn't help but think how daft they were not to figure that this was where he was headed. Their first plan - to pose as several different couples, this being the newlywed edition - seemed a bit flawed. Why, exactly, would a couple of newlyweds be perusing the storefronts down Knockturn Alley?

Suddenly, Sirius stopped walking and jerked his head toward Regulus. He had stopped in front of Borgin and Burkes as though he was waiting for someone or something. Marly opened her mouth to say something to Sirius, but he held up a hand to stop her as three or four people came out of the store, although the shadows weren't allowing her to make out their faces. Before Marly knew what he was doing, Sirius backed Marly into an alley. She really wasn't very good at this sort of thing and she hoped that Sirius wasn't rethinking having her for a partner in this endeavour.

As they watched from their hiding spot, Marly realized that the reason she couldn't make out their faces were because they were covered with masks and they all had hoods drawn up around them. However, as she squinted her now brown eyes, she could tell that one of them was female - there was no way a man would be _that_ curvaceous. Sparing a glance at Sirius, she noticed how narrow his eyes were. While she looked nothing like himself, Marly still felt her heart flop as he drew a protective arm around her waist.

_'Damn it, Marly!'_ she scolded herself silent, looking back at the group, who were talking quietly. _'This definitely is _not_ the time for that.'_

"What d'you think they're doing?" Marly whispered in a barely audible voice, but they were so close together it hardly mattered. She couldn't help thinking that he could probably hear her very thoughts.

"I'm not sure," Sirius replied, his breath warm against her neck. "I think it might be some sort of initiation."

"Maybe," Marly agreed, remembering that at their last meeting with Dumbledore, they had been told that Regulus was not yet a full-fledged member of Voldemort's Death Eaters.

Suddenly, the group began to turn and head back in the direction toward Diagon Alley. Marly began to panic as they pressed themselves against the alley. She _knew_ they were going to be spotted. Thinking quickly, Marly drew her wand and pointed it at Sirius, who instantly blended into the shadows and brick. She then did the Disillusionment Charm to herself and pressed against the wall just in time for the Death Eaters to pass by.

Hardly breathing, Marly noticed that all five of them were now wearing the masks. However, it was quite easy to pick out Regulus, as he, like Sirius, seemed to tower over everyone else.

After taking a few bated breaths, Marly saw Sirius's outline move toward the entrance to the alley. He paused for a moment, then turned back to Marly.

"Let's go," Sirius whispered.

"Hang on," Marly stopped him, lifting the charm.

"Maybe we should - "

"We need to be able to see each other," Marly explained, feeling the prickles as she lifted the charm off herself as well.

Sirius looked like he wanted to argue, but given the circumstances and how quickly they needed to hurry, relented. With a nod, he grasped her hand instinctively, pulling her down Knockturn Alley.

Before they made it to the end, there was a scream and crash. Instantly, the two broke into a run, skidding to a halt in the middle of Diagon Alley. They were greeted with the sight of the Apothecary - Marly chastised herself silently, realizing how obvious it had been as Regulus had spent quite some time loitering there before taking to Knockturn Alley - bursting into flames. Suddenly, a woman rushed out of the front entrance in a nightgown, ushering her two young children with her. Behind her was her husband, the shopkeeper, who was looking at the flames in disbelief.

"Bloody hell!" he swore loudly, then, realizing why his family was frozen in front of them, drew his wand out of his dressing gown. "Leave us alone! We did nothing to you!"

_"Morsmordre!"_ the woman shouted, filling the sky with the sparkling green Dark Mark that filled Marly with a sense of dread.

The tallest Death Eater, better known as Regulus, hardly even twitched his wand before the family was in the air. Marly remembered the mother from Hogwarts - her name had been Andrea Turner at the time, was a few years older than Marly, and was Muggle-born. From what she could recall, she had married Will - or was his name Bill? - Wickersham, who was also a Muggle-born.

Marly began to tell Sirius that they should somehow alert other members of the Order - they were only supposed to be following Regulus, not stopping an attack - but he had taken off toward them, yelling in gibberish the entire way.

One of the Death Eaters noticed Sirius and shouted, _"Crucio!"_

Before the curse could hit Sirius, though, he yelled, _"Protego!"_

As the curse bounced off of the shield and disappeared into the air, Marly was silently relieved to see that the Sirius had been smart enough for the charm he had made to not work on spell names. He was _much_ more clever than she would have ever suspected.

Taking a deep breath, Marly took off after Sirius, hoping that one of the other witches and wizards living on Diagon Alley would see fit to alert the Ministry.

_"Stupefy!"_

_"Petrificus Totalus!"_

_"Impedimenta!"_

_"Protego!"_

Marly hardly knew what spells she was yelling and what were coming her way. She kept shouting jinxes and hexes, praying that they were meeting their mark. It felt as though the Death Eaters had multiplied, which was more than likely the case. Where _were_ the Ministry? Surely, some Aurors had to be on their way, right?

Suddenly, a curse was shouted that made Marly feel as though her entire insides were frozen.

_"Avada Kedavra!"_

Marly whipped around, searching for Sirius's blonde hair in the darkness. _'Oh, _Merlin_, no.'_

Suddenly, the eldest child began to fall from where she had been floating with the rest of her family. Blinking a few times, Marly recognized Sirius underneath her, catching her lifeless body in midair. Andrea let out a wail as she realized what had happened.

Unable to feel quite more than a bit relieved that Sirius was fine, Marly turned back to send out a hex. However, before her mouth could even open, she was filled with excruciating pain - pain she had never felt before. She couldn't stop it, couldn't do anything. As her knees fell to the ground, she brought herself into the foetal position, willing the pain to go away. _'Just kill me already!'_ she thought, not able to feel the streams of tears running down her face or hear the screams that were emitting from her mouth.

Then, as suddenly as it started, it stopped. Marly blinked a few times and barely recognized James running over her, jets of light flying out of his wand. She couldn't even hear Lily's soothing voice above her, telling her she'd be fine.

Rather, everything was numb. And, slowly, Marly gave into the numbness as everything went black.

* * *

_**Author's Note:** This chapter took a long time to write. I kept rewriting things and was unhappy with many things, but I actually really like it now. A lot happens, but you'll have that. I like the cliffhanger as well, by the way. I think they're a way of life, really. She isn't dead, by the way, so I better not get any upset reviews regarding that...I'm sure I'll get a few about Remus, but, I say again - you'll just have to stick around to see what's going to happen. (-:_

I just want to take a quick moment to explain that Marly is very_ powerful, although I think that I might have made that much clear in past chapters. In the first Harry Potter book, Hagrid himself commented that Marlene McKinnon was one of the strongest witches of her time. It was mainly because of that statement that I chose to use her for this fic, rather than one of the other Order members that fought in the first war. When writing, I'm kind of afraid that I'm making her a lot like Jean Grey from X-men, but that's also sort of my intention. They are both very strong, but don't realize just how strong they are. But, Marly definitely isn't going to turn into the Phoenix any time soon. (-: So, because Marly had such strong emotions surging through her while arguing with Remus, she unconsciously moved the dumpster. Also, while normally a strong character would instantly make someone a hardcore Mary-Sue, I'm striving to keep Marly away from that title. I'm hoping that I'm doing that and if you would let me know if it gets too bad, I would love it if you'd let me know._

So! That's that! Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think.  



	10. Evaporated

_**Disclaimer: **This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended. The song "Evaporated" is by Ben Folds and I do not, in any way, own it._

**  
Desperado  
Chapter Nine: Evaporated**

_I poured my heart out  
I poured my heart out  
It evaporated, see?_

It's an interesting thing - dreams. They can be quite fickle. Some claim that dreams are the subconscious begging for attention, wanting to let us see how it saw the events of the day. Others still swear that the images are explaining our current status in life that we cannot see without interpretation. Then there are the people who believe that dreams are so in tune with ourselves that they foretell our future.

Marly never actually had a solid stance on dreams - partly because she could never remember them, but mostly because she really didn't care an awful lot. However, when you fall into a potion-induced coma, it's just you and your dreams and Marly couldn't help but begin to enjoy their company.

However, there was this one dream that wouldn't leave her alone. While the images were hazy and the dialogue out of tune, she understood that it was about a werewolf and -

"Sirius," a barely audible whisper escaped her lips and her eyes slowly began to flicker open.

"Marly? Oh, my God, James, she's awake," Lily's rapid speech filled Marly's ears. "Go and get Remus and Sirius - now."

James didn't say anything, but Marly could hear his footsteps grow fainter as they pounded against the wood panelling at a run.

"It's…bright," Marly managed, squinting in the sunlight, trying valiantly to take in her surroundings. She tried to lift her arm, but the soreness prevented her from actually doing it.

Lily rushed across the room and let the curtains fall shut, the room now quite dim and only illuminated by a few candles and the crack where the curtains met. She poured a glass of water quickly and placed a straw in it before going back to where Marly was laying.

"How do you feel?"

"Like crap."

"Understandable."

"Where are we? What happened? I can't remember…" Marly's eyes widened as the memories came flooding back - the mission. "Is Sirius okay?"

"He's fine - we're all fine," Lily nodded, bringing the straw down to Marly's mouth so she could drink some of the water. "We're in one of the bedrooms at headquarters right now. Dumbledore said that you couldn't go to St. Mungo's - something about your mission?"

Marly nodded slightly, the motion making her head ache. Before Sirius and Marly had left for the mission, Dumbledore had informed them that if anything was to happen, they were unable to receive care from St. Mungo's, as it would raise questions since neither of them were Aurors.

"James, Mad-Eye, and I happened to be at headquarters when Mad-Eye was summoned about a Death Eater attack," Lily began explaining, absentmindedly playing with the straw. "We Apparated straight there and James was able to hex whoever was cursing you." An odd shiver ran through her. "I don't know what would have happened had you been under it much longer. Anyways, I brought you back here right away and you've been asleep since."

"How long was I out for?"

"It's been a week," Lily sighed. "At first I had to put you under because you were in so much pain. I'd given you a potion to correct the nerve damage, but you'd wake up screaming before the potion could run its course."

"And work?" Marly asked, almost afraid of what the answer might be.

"I told them you've had a bit of an accident," Lily started sheepishly, biting down on her lip. "But, well, Healer Fredrickson is less than sympathetic, what with the amount of work you've been working."

"Lovely," Marly sighed, the effort making her chest ache. "I've been wanting to get a new job anyway."

"Marly!" Remus exclaimed, rushing across the room so quickly it made Lily jump up. "How are you feeling?"

"Well, I'm awake," Marly smirked as he reached down and took hold of her hand. "I suppose that's always a good thing."

The others gave her a bit of a chuckle and Marly met Sirius's eyes, which she was unable to read. Not wanting to think about it at the moment, she turned to James.

"I hear I should be thanking you for your heroic deeds and saving my life," Marly smiled at him.

"It's what I do, milady," James returned her smile, pretending to tip a hat. "Anytime."

"Come on, James, let's leave them alone," Lily rolled her eyes, taking her fiancé by the hand out of the room. "I'll be back later to check on you, Marly."

"Thanks, Lily," Marly called, suddenly feeling quite awkward being alone with Sirius and Remus at the same time.

"Can I get you anything?" Remus asked, his eyes worried as he sat on the edge of her bed. "Are you hungry? I could run downstairs and pick you up something from the kitchen if you want. Or I could get you a book from the - "

"Rem, no, I'm fine," Marly interrupted him. "It's all right."

"You're sure?" Remus asked.

"I'm positive," Marly smiled at him as the clock in the bedroom began to strike four o'clock.

"I have to go to work," Remus sighed, his face falling as he made this realization. "But, I'll be back as soon as my shift is over, all right?"

"I'll see you, then," Marly agreed and Remus straightened up, squeezing her hand one more time.

As he crossed the room, Marly noticed that he wavered slightly as he passed Sirius and she had a feeling that he was probably doing his best to give him a bit of an intimidating look. From the look on Sirius's face, it seemed to be working on him as well as it did for her.

Once he was gone, Sirius walked toward the queen-sized bed, his arms crossed. He gave her a concerned look, but before he could ask, Marly interrupted him.

"No, I'm fine."

"Well, actually, I was going to ask you to marry me, but I see how you feel on the subject," Sirius replied, giving her a smile. "But, I'm glad you're fine."

"And you're fine?"

"I'd say," Sirius joked, smoothing his hands over his chest. Then, after flashing her a smile, he said, "Just a few scrapes and bruises, but Lily was able to fix me up real fast."

"I'm sorry I passed out."

"I would've been surprised if you hadn't," Sirius admitted, sitting in the chair Lily had left next to the bed. Marly liked to think that he'd been in that chair quite a lot while she was asleep. "Do you even know how long you were under?"

Marly tried to remember, but could only recall the insane amount of pain she had been in. She supposed she was probably lucky to only have a dull ache to remind her.

When she didn't say anything, Sirius continued, "Honestly, it must have been almost twenty minutes. I feel horrible because I wasn't able to reach you before then. We were the only two fighting as the family was unarmed and unable to fight back."

"It's not your fault."

"You may be right, but that doesn't make me feel any less guilty," Sirius gave her a sheepish look. "Anyways, I'm not supposed to tell you this, but Dumbledore said that you should have either lost your mind or died."

"I don't think I lost my mind," Marly furrowed her brow. "You know, they always say that if you think you're crazy, it means you aren't."

"Well, we already know you're crazy," Sirius reached out to hold Marly's hand, giving her butterflies. "He said that the only reason he can think of for you _not_ getting terrible after effects is how strong you are."

"I wish he'd stop telling me how strong I am," Marly complained, swallowing hard. "It makes me feel like I'm some sort of super witch."

"He also said that we're supposed to be watching you in the next few weeks," Sirius continued, obviously wanting Marly to know what was really going on.

"What do you mean?" Marly raised an eyebrow.

"Moony, Lily, and I are under strict orders to watch you," Sirius continued, tightening his grip on her fingers. "Dumbledore has this theory that since you were under such a considerable amount of stress for an extended period of time like that, your powers may be a bit out of whack. Basically, he just wants us to make sure that you won't go hurting someone."

"See!" Marly exclaimed, making to sit up instinctively, but her sore muscles wouldn't let her do more than jerk slightly. "This is why I hate being so damn powerful. I'm going to ignite England in flames like we talked about."

Sirius smiled. "I sure hope not."

"Dumbledore wasn't going to tell me this?" Marly asked, feeling some contempt for the old man.

"Well, I don't know," Sirius shrugged guiltily. "He didn't want to act until he really knew what was happening to you and since you were sleeping and we couldn't wake you, it was pretty hard to see what was going on."

Marly sighed again, wishing she could sleep for another week. Deciding she was finished with this conversation as it was only making her head pound harder, she changed the subject.

"What have you been doing for a week?"

"I've been in hysterics without our witty banter."

"I'm glad to hear that," Marly nodded, smiling.

"I've been here most of the time," Sirius admitted. "I had to work and everything, but I tried to stay in case you happened to wake up."

"Was Remus here as well?"

Sirius nodded. "He seems to be upset with me for some reason or another. I can't put my finger on it."

"I'll have to talk to him," Marly sighed. "Speaking of awkward conversations…"

"Yes?"

"I think we have a date to have one."

Sirius looked concerned. "Are you sure you want to talk about that right now? I mean, you just woke up after a week long nap - "

"And I'm more than a little refreshed," Marly smirked. "Let me cut to the chase - I want us to be together. However, I'll understand if you'd rather not deal with the Remus drama."

"I want us to be together as well," Sirius said quietly. "Why couldn't we have met before Moony went and grew a backbone?"

"I think he's always had one," Marly mused, thinking back to her past relationships. Her boyfriends would always act as though Remus was some big competition and in the way of winning Marly, but Remus always did nothing to alleviate their concern. "This is just the first time he's chosen to express it to such an extent."

"Well, that's awful considerate of him," Sirius smirked.

Marly gave Sirius a wry look before carefully and slowly moving over so he could sit on the bed next to her. The soreness was starting to lift and she had a feeling that it was because she was trying to move around and be active. He took her hint and lay down next to her on his side, propping his head up on his left hand.

"I really like you," Marly admitted. "And it's different than the other blokes I've dated - I actually enjoy spending time with you."

Sirius let out a laugh. "That's always a good thing."

"What do you think we should do?"

Sirius let out a long breath, looking past Marly and at a portrait on the other side of the room. "We've both been friends with Moony for quite some time. We've made our mistakes and he's always forgiven us. Plus, he's a fairly level-headed bloke. I think that if we tried being together he'd eventually get over it, you know what I mean?"

Marly nodded mutely, hoping that that would be the case. She had no idea why, but Sirius really did seem different from any other men she had dated. Besides, she knew that he wasn't married with a few kids or in need of a quick marriage in order to secure his parents' inheritance. No, he was an honest to Merlin good bloke - would Remus really stand in the way of something like that? He _knew_ that Sirius was good news, otherwise he wouldn't have put up with him being one of his best mates all these years.

"I agree," Marly nodded again.

"I'm glad to hear that."

"I'm glad to hear you're glad."

"Well, I'm just glad," Sirius smiled, then leaned forward to kiss her softly. "Regrettably, I need to go to work."

Marly gave him a dejected look that made him laugh.

"If it makes you feel any better, I should have left when Moony did, but I chose to pretend I didn't," Sirius's smile turned into a grin.

Marly laughed quietly. "I'm sure Penny will just love that."

"Well, I told her that I've been at your bedside when I'm not at work and she seemed pretty sympathetic," Sirius began to sit up. "She's a sap for stuff like that."

"Have you really been here this whole time?"

"Well, I did leave to go to the bathroom and eat," Sirius shrugged.

"How could you lie like that?" Marly joked, trying to offset how hot her face felt.

"I know, I'm horrible," Sirius smiled, clearly catching her red face but not wanting to make her feel more embarrassed. "I won't let it happen again."

"Good," Marly nodded once, smiling.

"I'll be back later tonight," Sirius got to his feet. "You should stay awake."

"I just slept for a week," Marly smirked. "I think I'm good for a while."

Sirius leaned over the bed and kissed her softly once more. Marly would have done anything for him to stay, but she did understand.

"Drink a brandy for me."

"I think I'll take you up on that," Sirius gave her a lopsided grin before waving once and leaving the room.

* * *

"So," Marly concluded in an almost desperate tone, a bowl of soup in her lap as she watched her sister, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed with her own bowl of soup. "What would you do in my position?" 

Anna looked thoughtful as she stared into space, as though trying to put a puzzle together. Marly had given her the details of everything that had happened in her life recently - from her homecoming gift to Remus to the conversation she had just had with Sirius a few hours beforehand. Lily wouldn't let Marly out of her bed, despite that she could move without feeling pain and wanted more than anything to get out of headquarters, so Anna had agreed to have a late dinner with her, as she had Quidditch practice beforehand.

"Honestly?" Anna asked after a moment.

"Yes, honestly," Marly nodded fervently.

"I'd owl you," Anna gave Marly an apologetic smile. "However, do you want to know what you'd most likely say to me?"

"Let's hear it," Marly sighed, swirling her finger at the top of her soup.

"I think that you'd tell me that I'm so lucky to have two wonderful blokes vying for my attention," Anna began with a sly smirk. "However, once you finished telling me how much you despised me for my so-called problem, you'd make sure that I understood that whatever decision I'd make, I'd be hurting one of these wonderful blokes." Marly opened her mouth to say something - most likely regarding the fact that this was not helping her whatsoever - but Anna put a hand up to stop her. "But, you'd then remind me that I need to look out for myself for once and stop trying to please everyone - everyone being Remus Lupin."

"It's just, he's been my best mate for so long, you know?" Marly asked, wishing her sister didn't have to point out the truth at moments like this. "I feel like I owe him something."

"I think that it would hurt him more to find out that you were pretending to have a romantic relationship with him than if you were to make yourself happy," Anna replied quietly, reaching over and putting her empty bowl on the table Lily had brought in. "Even if he may not act it now, in the long run he'll understand that you did the right thing."

"He's the last person I want to hurt," Marly looked away from Anna. "We've been through so much together."

Anna leaned forward and put a tender hand on Marly's knee. "Marly, listen to me. You need to talk to him. He'll understand."

Marly was about to say that she wasn't sure when there was a quiet knock on the door and then it was pushed open. Remus was standing on the other side, a small bouquet of flowers in his right hand.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, striding across the room and setting the flowers on the table.

"Not nearly as hungry as Lily seemed to have thought I was," Marly admitted, looking down at her half-eaten bowl of soup.

"I'll take these down to the kitchen," Anna offered, taking the bowl from Marly and putting it inside her own. She gathered them up after getting to her feet and, once she was behind Remus, gave Marly a very pointed look and jerked a finger at him.

"Thanks, Anna," Marly managed as her sister left the room, closing the door on the way out.

"How are you really feeling?" Remus asked, kicking off his shoes before sitting on the bed where Anna had been a few seconds before.

"Better," Marly nodded. "I don't hurt all over, so that's a plus."

"I can't believe you had to go through that," Remus said quietly, inching toward her slightly.

Marly shrugged. "It comes with the job - I should have surmised so much that saving the world didn't come without a little ouch."

Remus smiled at her, making Marly feel a bit uncomfortable. What she would give to go back only a few weeks ago when things were still normal.

"Can we talk?" Marly asked, biting her lip. She didn't really enjoy that she was having two big conversations the day she woke up after a weeklong rest, but she hated that it was hanging over her head even more.

"Of course," Remus nodded, obviously not recalling their last conversation before the mission.

"You know I love you, right?" Marly asked. "I don't use that word a lot, but I really do love you."

Remus gave Marly a big of a confused look. "You love me?"

"No, wait, Remus," Marly shook her head. "You don't understand. You're my best mate and I love you with all my heart. However, you'll always only be my best mate."

"Is that all?" Remus asked, looking a bit brassed.

"I don't mean it like that," Marly shook her head again, wishing she could actually say what she meant. "Rem, we've been best mates for years now. Even though you keep saying you don't, I know that you, er, have _feelings_ that are a bit more complex than a normal best friendship possesses." Remus began to protest, but Marly pushed on, ignoring him. "However, as my best mate, I can't lie to you just to make you happy. If I pretended I had feelings for you that weren't there, Rem, it would just _kill_ me. I'd be leading you on and that isn't fair of me."

They fell silent and, after a moment, Remus asked, "But you have those feelings for Sirius of all people?"

"Yes, Remus, I think I do," Marly nodded.

"You love him?"

"I don't know? Maybe?" Marly raised an eyebrow. "Right now I know that I'm willing to stick by him for a while and explore that option. Maybe we won't be meant for each other in the long run, but right now I know that he's worth a shot."

They fell silent once more. Remus met Marly eyes and, after a moment's hesitation, he said, "You know what happens to me when you find another boyfriend?"

_'Here it comes,'_ Marly thought, but only shook her head no.

"I can't really explain it, to be honest," Remus began slowly, weighing each word. "It's not as though I'm jealous or feeling possessive of you. I'm never really mad at you, actually. I get mad at myself because I'm not good enough. I feel as though I'm not good enough for you to want me instead of some new guy."

Marly swallowed hard, wishing for this conversation to be over. "Rem, it isn't that you aren't good enough - "

"Then what is it?" Remus asked, although there wasn't any anger in his voice.

"I don't know," Marly looked away from him, unsure of how to explain it.

"Is it because I'm a werewolf?"

"Oh, Merlin, no!" Marly opened her eyes wide, surprised that he would even say that. "You'd think that after fifteen years you'd have realized that I'm square with that."

"Being friends with a werewolf is a lot different than being involved with one, Marly," Remus pointed out.

Marly sighed, rubbing her temples as the painful throbbing came back. "You're like my brother. You are one of the most important people in my life and I love you, but I'd never be able to be with you like that." Marly paused, meeting his eyes. "You have to understand that I am absolutely terrified that if I'm in a position like that with you, it'll end the same way all of my past relationships have. Remus, I don't think I'd be able to bear losing you."

Remus blinked blankly a few times. "But you're not afraid to lose Sirius?"

"I don't know," Marly admitted. "Sirius scares the hell out of me, to be perfectly honest. He sweet and kind and loving with a bad boy exterior."

Remus was silent for a few moments before saying, "He'd never hurt you."

"I don't think he would either," Marly agreed. "At least not on purpose."

"Definitely not on purpose," Remus smirked. "He knows full well how many hexes I know from Hogwarts."

Marly couldn't help but laugh. "Does this mean you'll stop being a berk?"

"Me? A berk?"

"I don't know what else you'd call this new Remus that has been living with me these past few weeks," Marly smiled coyly.

Remus let out a sigh. "If you want to be with him, then go ahead - I'm not going to stop you. I can't keep fighting an obviously losing battle. But, Marly?" He met her eyes, making her heart break. "Someday you're going to figure it out. But, then again, someday someone else is going to be with me."

"You're trying to make me feel guilty, aren't you," Marly raised an eyebrow.

"Is it working?"

"If you wouldn't have admitted to it, maybe."

Remus let out a small laugh, then lay back in Marly's bed at her side. "I'm sorry I've been a berk."

"Well, I've gotten quite used to it," Marly lay down next to him. "You're not upset with me?"

"I guess not," Remus sighed. "Besides, I can't meet rent without you."

Marly gasped, pretending to be quite scandalized, then playfully socked him in the arm. "Sod off, Mr. Lupin."

"By the way, once you get home you're cleaning your room," Remus added. "Absolutely horrid."

Marly chuckled and allowed Remus to put an arm around her shoulders. While things would never be the same, Marly understood that life isn't about comfort and security - not always, at least. Rather, she realized that life is a series of experiences, all of them important, all of them here to be plumbed, squeezed, and sucked dry. Not for their own sake, but so we may be able to come to understand ourselves. Because, in all actuality, no one _truly_ knew themselves.

"Thank you, Rem."

"You're welcome," he replied quietly as her eyes fluttered shut for what she hoped would be another dreamless sleep.

* * *

_**Author's Note: ** There you are, lovelies. Now, the question is - how much truth is behind Remus's words? Dun dun dun.. (-: Anyways, thanks for reading and please let me know what you think!_


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